Red Ink Editorial Services

By Dion M. Harris

Hometown stage and screen star Wendell Pierce earned a key to the city Saturday night from New Orleans Mayor Helena Moreno before the local premiere of his latest film, “They Fight.”

The free screening, held at the Orpheum Theater, was presented by the New Orleans Film Society and Andscape, a black-led sports-culture platform under ESPN, which produced the film. The reservation-only event was part of the Orpheum’s Summer Movie Series and also the Film Society’s NOFS/365 programming.

“They Fight” tells the story of Walt, a newly released convict looking to right the wrongs of his past while gaining his footing in D.C. after a three-year bid in prison. Pierce co-stars as Slim, the sage community center manager who offers Walt a place to sleep and an opportunity to put his storied boxing skills back into use. The two men subsequently coach Peanut and Quincey, two bright-eyed pre-teens, in a delightful coming-of-age story about hard knocks, hope, self-confidence and resilience. It was filmed in Baltimore.

Director Sheldon Candis directed a 2018 documentary of the real-life Walter Manigan’s work at Lyfe Style, his D.C. boxing gym. Manigan died three weeks before his 54th birthday in July 2022. “They Fight” is now streaming on several internet platforms.

“I made this movie for us,” Candis said two weeks ago at the Martha’s Vineyard African-American Film Fest. “At the end of the day, this is a serious movie. But the movie doesn’t take itself too seriously, and I think that’s a great way to be in life.”

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