Author’s Note: My BF listens to a narrated summary of movies on social media. This morning, during breakfast, the narrator was outlining this story and I was hooked. This movie is still in some theatres and is also a pay-to-view right now on streaming services. I did find it on the Internet for free, TBH, and watched it — I couldn’t look away, it was SO good. It is a bit triggering, for those who have survived DV, so TRIGGER WARNING to be sure. Please be cautious and be kind to yourself. There is a bout of strangulation in this movie, at one point. I’ve recently realized that when I see that in a movie scene, I know it’s not real and I know it’s not happening to me — BUT, I’ve found I hold my breath through it, as if it were HAPPENING TO ME. I know this about myself and found myself doing that today with this movie. STILL, it was worth the watch. This is a two thumbs-up, POSITIVE movie review, but with warnings sprinkled in! <3
***TRIGGER WARNING***
Christy is an old-school sports biopic with real bruises under the gloss: it tracks Christy Salters/Martin’s rise as a 1990s boxing phenomenon, but refuses to pretend the hardest fights only happened under arena lights. The film’s biggest strength is how it lets Christy’s drive and talent coexist with the messy, isolating reality of coercive control—showing how someone can look unstoppable in public while being systematically broken down in private. She went from family abuse to intimate partner abuse, as the movie progressed.
Sydney Sweeney’s performance is the engine: she gives Christy physical presence and a kind of guarded, practical grit that makes the victories feel earned—not “inspirational-poster” earned, but minute-by-minute earned. Critics were mixed on the film overall, but many still singled out her transformation and commitment as the reason it lands emotionally.
Just as importantly for survivor audiences, the movie (at its best) doesn’t frame Christy as “weak for staying.” Instead, it shows how power imbalances, isolation, financial control, public image management, and sexual coercion can trap a person—especially when the abuser is also the gatekeeper to their career.
Trigger Points to Know Going in (DV-Survivor Focused)
This film can be highly activating. Major trigger areas include:
- Coercive control and isolation: restricting who she sees (including past partners), controlling her persona/presentation, and using power dynamics to dominate her life.
- Humiliation and sexual coercion/exploitation: the film includes coercion into uncomfortable “performances,” including recorded material used for control and punishment. We won’t even approach the glamorized prostitution.
- Gaslighting and minimization by others: moments where Christy’s concerns are dismissed or reframed as “paranoia,” which can be especially triggering for survivors who weren’t believed.
- Stalking and outing: retaliatory behavior when she tries to leave, including public outing and harassment.
- Severe physical domestic violence (life-threatening): the movie depicts a brutal, bloody attack (not just implied). If graphic violence is a trigger, this is the biggest red flag.
- Substance use: repeated cocaine use is depicted.
- Slurs/homophobia: including language used to distance herself from her identity.
If you’re watching as a survivor: this is a good one for daytime viewing, with a “pause plan,” and something regulating queued up afterward. I suggest a beloved movie or show that you’ve seen before — mine is You’ve Got Mail with Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks.
Her Comeback Arc (and Why it “Hits” — Sorry, Badly Placed Pun)
Without spoiling every beat: the film’s “comeback” isn’t just athletic. It’s identity + autonomy.
- She moves from surviving in silence to making choices that risk everything (career, reputation, safety) because she wants her life back.
- After the pivotal violence, the movie emphasizes recovery as being seen, being believed (sometimes late), and returning to community—including the symbolic return to the gym and rebuilding without her abuser controlling the narrative.
- The end cards and resolution frame her as someone who continues forward—not defined by what was done to her, but by what she rebuilds.
That’s where the film earns its title: “Christy” isn’t a brand or a highlight reel—it’s a person clawing her name and identity back.
Was She Supported—and by Whom?
The movie is pretty blunt: support is uneven, and that’s realistic — as we all already know…
Supportive / Protective Forces (Shown as Helpful):
- Rosie (based on Sherry Lusk) is depicted as a significant emotional anchor when Christy reconnects and seeks support while trying to leave.
- Jeff (friend/ringside support) and her broader gym circle are framed as part of her eventual “net,” including the sense that she’s welcomed back and not treated as damaged goods.
- Lisa Holewyne is first positioned as adversary, but the film later uses her as a meaningful mirror—someone who sees Christy more clearly once the mask drops, culminating in reconciliation and a forward-looking ending.
- Even the stranger/passerby who gets her help functions as an important reminder the film makes: sometimes survival hinges on one person acting fast.
Non-Supportive / Actively Harmful Responses (Shown as Obstacles):
- Joyce (her mother) is portrayed as dismissive earlier and blaming later—an ugly but common reality for survivors who are met with denial, stigma, or “why didn’t you just…” logic.
- Jim/James Martin is depicted as the classic “career gatekeeper” abuser: training, controlling, exploiting, and then escalating when control slips.
In short: the film shows how a survivor can be surrounded by people and still be profoundly alone—until the right people (and sometimes just one decent person) become a bridge out.
Final Take
If you want a film that centers a survivor’s fight to reclaim her life—and doesn’t sugarcoat the mechanisms of abuse—Christy is worth watching. Just don’t go in expecting a “sports movie with a sad subplot.” The domestic violence storyline is not decorative; it’s core, explicit, and potentially triggering. The best stories are real life and Christy truly lived through a turbulent ride. She is now a advocate for those who have experienced domestic violence. Here is her website: https://christyschamps.org/.
I’d love to hear her speak in the future. She’s now on my personal hero list! <3
See the YouTube Trailer HERE:
