PG-13 | 1h 28m | Documentary | March 8, 2014 Liam Neeson, former heavyweight amateur boxer-turned-actor, narrates “Manny,” a powerful, if somewhat superficial, documentary about legend-in-his-own-time Filipino boxer Manuel “Pacman” Pacquiao.
Manny Pacquiao (center) winning a belt in “Manny.” (Gravitas Ventures/Universal Pictures)
Pacquiao was the only boxer in history to win championships across eight different weight classes. He’s a warrior-hero renowned in all of Boxing-dom, who’s also provided great hope and inspiration to his native land. His story follows the classic Hero’s Journey stages so precisely, I’ll line it all up, blow-by-blow, as they say in boxing.
Manny Pacquiao (R) doing roadwork with a trainer in “Manny.” (Gravitas Ventures/Universal Pictures)
The Ordinary World and the Call to Adventure
The hero is introduced, as he dwells in the “Ordinary world,” in the village-compound of his upbringing. Born in 1978, Manny grew up during the bloody Philippines civil war, seeing dead bodies at age 5….