A documentary that fills the viewer with pure pride.
Going into another Irish sports personality – for another documentary that involves being paid to punch other people in the face for a living – didn’t exactly have this reviewer overflowing with anticipation.
Less than a year earlier, Conor McGregor’s Notorious documentary arrived in cinemas, and what amounted to a series of scenes involving wealth porn and basically CCTV footage of his workout routine did nothing to tell us about the man himself. Especially in hindsight, considering McGregor’s own notorious career trajectory, that documentary has done nothing but worsened in quality.
However, we’re happy to report that Katie is not of the same ilk. Instead, we get a decent look at who she is as a person, as well as a fantastic overview of the profoundly positive influence she has had not just on boxing, but for all female sports personalities around the world.
It also isn’t afraid to shine a light on the less positive sides of Taylor’s life, instead of just being an endless cheerleading service for the topic of the documentary.
Clip via Wildcard Distribution
Director Ross Whitaker probes into Taylor’s rocky relationship with her father, as well as how she deals with the aftermath of losing a fight for the first time in a decade, which gives us an actual character arc for Katie, and the story that is being told for the viewer.
This is mixed in with just how big a game-changer actually was for her sport, almost single-handedly helping women’s boxing to get the international recognition that it deserved, as well as eventually helping to get it joined in as part of the Olympics.
Seeing how much effect Katie Taylor has had on improving the overall impression of women’s boxing around the world is nothing short of massively impressive, and it really hammers home a sense of pride in what she has accomplished not just for herself, but for her sport, and for women in general.
It is not, repeat NOT, just a series of scenes of a person showing off their wealth, or hanging out with famous people.
In Notorious, we see a very looooong scene of McGregor with Arnold Schwarzenegger in his home, that just feels like an excuse for him to show off that the world’s most famous action star is a fan.
In Katie, there is an incredibly brief scene of Taylor talking to Colin Farrell, backstage after a match, a fellow Irish person who has nothing but respect and admiration for who she is and what she has accomplished.
It is a response that every audience member watching the movie will share with him.
Katie is available to watch on Netflix from Monday 11 March.
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