Giant review – Prince Naseem biopic with Pierce Brosnan on hand misses the punch

<p><strong>London film festival<br></strong>Despite the odd laugh, the story of the boxer’s path from Sheffield gyms to global stardom and his break with mentor Brendan Ingle feels dramatically underweight</p><p>There’s a really good cast here, in a movie with a real-life story to tell: how Irish boxing trainer Brendan Ingle mentored a cheeky Sheffield kid from migrant Yemeni parents, “Prince” Naseem Hamed, teaching him to stand up to racist bullies and turning him into a media-friendly world champ in the late 90s, nurturing his showboating arrogance and his lethal fists. But, after becoming wealthy, Hamed brattishly turned against Ingle, cutting him out of the action, and turning him into a combination of John Falstaff and Broadway Danny Rose. Pierce Brosnan plays Ingle; Amir El-Masry is Hamed and Toby Stephens is bullish London promoter Frank Warren who saw the goldmine that Ingle had discovered.</p><p>But the movie frankly lacks the Prince’s fancy footwork: the boxing sequences run smoothly but the all-important drama between them is repeatedly flat and one-note. There is no nuance or light and shade in the depiction of Hamed himself, and that otherwise outstanding performer El-Masry isn’t given the chance to show any subtlety or much of what might make his character really interesting – although he’s clearly been training and looks very plausible in the ring.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/oct/18/giant-review-pierce-brosnans-prince-naseem-hamed-biopic">Continue reading...</a>