It stars Jon Voight as Billy Flynn, a former boxer who attempts to support his son (Ricky Schroder) and reconcile with his ex-wife (Faye Dunaway) by fighting in the ring again.

When he takes him home, neighbor Josie asks about his drunken state on the street, and T.J. tells her that Charlie and his friends bought him four beers as a celebration.

To make amends with his son, Billy explains his promise to fight in the ring after Jackie warns him about his age and constant headaches, which could be fatal when boxing.

[5] Michael Booth of The Denver Post wrote positively of the film: "Director Franco Zeffirelli makes beautiful pictures; from Shakespeare to the life of St. Francis.

In 'The Champ', he imbues Florida with some old time movie magic, retelling the tale of a washed-up former boxer trying to shed booze and gambling to win back his son.

"[7] In The New York Times, critic Vincent Canby strongly panned the film, stating that "the most offputting thing about such canny, tear-stained movies as 'The Champ' is not their naïveté but their unholy sophistication.

"[8] In a positive review, Variety's Dale Pollock wrote: "Hardly anyone can resist a cute kid, and with Ricky Schroder, 'The Champ' has the most irresistible moppet seen on the screen in decades.

Franco Zeffirelli makes an auspicious debut on these shores with his first American film, bolstered by earnest performances from Jon Voight and Faye Dunaway.

"[10] Charles Champlin of the Los Angeles Times wrote in a generally positive review that "Zeffirelli has made 'The Champ' work again, on his and its extravagant terms.

It requires, makes no mistake, a willing surrender to those terms of sentimental romance and is less piquantly seasoned with wry worldliness than 'Heaven Can Wait,' for example, whose romantic idealism it shares.

"[11] Gary Arnold of The Washington Post opined that the film "slogs on for about two reels too many, concluding on a note of utterly contrived tragedy that should make just about everyone feel wretchedly deceived.

"[12] Clyde Jeavons of The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "Whether the unabashed sentimentality of Zeffirelli's remake of King Vidor's 1931 was deliberate or a misinterpretation of mood, one thing is certain; rarely has the screen been quite so awash with tears for so little apparent reason.

"[citation needed] The Champ has been listed among the most depressing films, and the final scene has been used in psychology experiments to elicit strong emotional responses.

The study concluded that the last three minutes of The Champ, in which T.J. sees his father win his comeback fight and then die, elicited the saddest response from a majority of the subjects.