The real Jackie Kallen, portrayed here by Meg Ryan, was a boxing promoter who, over time, managed champions in six different weight classes. The tough, chauvinist world of boxing did not welcome this determined Jewish woman from Detroit, whose story is transplanted to Cleveland, for this somewhat gritty tale.

In the late 1970’s Jackie is frustrated in her job as an efficient executive assistant to a boxing honcho. She knows more than her boss and manages to stay one step ahead of him in her platform high heels. Jackie grew up in a boxing family with a lifelong interest in the game, and she knows how to play hard ball with the big boys. That includes her "Erin Brockovich" thing with short tight skirts and low cut blouses. After a verbal spat with boxing promoter/manager Larocca (Tony Shalhoub from TV’s "The Monk"), with a small loan, she becomes the owner of a fighter, who under the right circumstances could become a champion.

On a visit to see her new boxer, she meets Luther (Omar Epps), sees his boxing moves and convinces him that she can manage him to fame and fortune in the boxing ring. Soon they are rolling over contenders and in almost no time are trying to get a fight with the champion, who is managed by Larocca. It’s a Sonny Liston - Muhammad Ali-type bravado that leads to a grudge match in the final moments of the film. The major conflict of the movie, other than the sexism in the sport, is the relationship that develops between Jackie and Luther when she falls in love with being a network media darling more than a boxing manager.

Renee (Kerry Washington) is Jackie’s good friend and becomes Luther’s romantic interest, while Felix (Charles Dutton) is the fight trainer/father figure to develop the physical and mental skills for the inevitable championship fight.

Meg Ryan is still easy on the eyes and she’s a charming actress who brings a reality to the world of boxing that makes you believe she could really be there. Shalhoub’s LaRocca is an unscrupulous manager, who may not look anything like Don King but he makes King type deals where he’s the only winner. If anything, Epps gives Luther a polish as a boxer that almost makes it look too easy. He looks the part and plays the part to achieve his goals with a minimum of effort and adversity.

The strongest point the film makes is that we are all much more than what people see. What most people saw in Jackie, especially the men in the boxing game, was an attractive woman who embodied their sexual fantasies or performed the preassigned roles of looking good or being someone’s assistant. Jackie knew she was that and more and as she said, if she could make them see her "from the neck up," she could be a person with her own desires and dreams not exclusively defined by filling "traditional" roles.

We liked "Against the Ropes" but wanted to embrace it more. We wanted knockout punches but got short jabs. The acting is excellent and some of the boxing scenes are riveting. The pat ending is not where the film needed the most improvement. The story is engaging but limited. Any woman who maneuvered herself into a position of managing Thomas "Hit Man" Hearns, who fought top boxers like Roberto Duran, Sugar Ray Leonard and Marvin Hagler, has a strong and interesting story to tell, which is not told here. Undisputed and Ali are recent boxing films that we liked more than this one. Although the film is based upon a true story, much of what happens is cliché and predictable. That said, if you like Meg Ryan, Tony Shalhoub, Charles Dutton, Omar Epps or boxing, a case can be made for seeing this film.