I’ve seen more classic boxing movies than matches in my lifetime. Golden Boy, The Set-Up, Champion, The Harder They Fall, Rocky, Raging Bull. The truth is, if I cared any less about men pummeling each other for money, it would be an effort. My limited interest is in the back stories of the big-screen boxers. Why do they fight? What compromises are they willing to make? In 1947, the New York Times spotlit the downside of the genre: “After all the assorted prizefight pictures

From Jane Austen to J.K. Rowling, many famous writers have had their novels transformed into movie hits. But for a classic film noir fan...