A Fighting Heart
Des Kilbane
Republic of Ireland, 2013, 57 min.
In English.
This film is family friendly.
Best Sports Documentary, Celtic Media Festival 2014
A Fighting Heart tells the epic story of Irish-American Johnny Kilbane, poet, politician and longest reigning World-Featherweight Champion of all time. Featuring newly-discovered archive footage, it's the rags-to-riches story of Kilbane's tough early life growing up in The Angle on Cleveland Ohio's Westside, his love of vaudeville, his chance discovery as a boxer and elevation to World Boxing Champion in 1912. The film charts the highs and lows in the life of a boxing legend as well as the equally fascinating story of Kilbane's post-boxing career where his resilience against all the challenges that life throws at him shines through.
Category: Documentary.
Themes: Sports, Biography, Historical, Politics, Irish Cinema.
Monday, April 21
The Screening Room
6:00pm
More in Documentary
-
A Promise of Paradise
Thomas Machowicz
United States, 2025, 15 min.In A Promise of Paradise, the quiet fields of Oklahoma become the backdrop for an unexpected moral awakening. Dan Peterson—a Vietnam veteran and... more ›
-
Middle Grounds
Kevin Smokler & Christopher Boone
United States, 2026, 27 min.A documentary short about Bison Coffeehouse, a Northeast Portland hub for coffee, community, and conversation — things that unite us when so much divides... more ›
-
Resonancia
Ted Nash
2026, 38 min.In the heart of Havana, Grammy-winning composer Ted Nash invites young Cuban musicians to find inspiration in the colors and forms of a museum’s... more ›
