“This movie speaks to me and every boxer who has entered the ring with conviction, “ said Ramos. “Real fighters know boxing isn’t just about knocking somebody out—it ain’t about street thugs and violence. It’s about our hearts and our determination to climb that mountain to a better place in life—out of the ghettos and the barrios and the streets.” The trailer for “Black Cloud” says, “The will of a warrior. The heart of a champion.” This pretty much sums up boxing for the real boxers,” continued Ramos. “Personally, I heard one line in that movie that tells me that Rick Schroder knows what he’s doing with this movie: “You have to lose yourself before you can find yourself.” This is a movie about becoming a man as much as it is about becoming a champion. The Retired Boxers Foundation and the thousands of fighters we represent will be there for Rick and for the movie, which will educate the public about the heart of the boxers who risk everything –the ones who fight with conviction.”
Rick Schroder is best know for his acting, most recently in NYPD Blue, and as a child in the 1979 classic, “The Champ,” starring Jon Voight about a boxer raising his young son. It is considered to be one of the best movies of all time, not to mention one of the very best boxing movies ever made. ‘The Champ” was one of the only films ever to show the emotional magnificence of the sweet science—the relationships and the struggle to succeed. The Champ epitomized the famous Joyce Carol Oates theory on the relationship between boxing and the people who love it, and is now brought to you in “Black Cloud:” “... for the mysterious solace of those who can participate only vicariously in such drama: the drama of life in the flesh." Schroder told Alex Ramos, “People still stop me to tell me how “The Champ” changed their lives—how it made a lasting impression on them. I know that “Black Cloud” will do the same thing.”
The Retired Boxers Foundation will have retired boxers at all of the theaters where Black Cloud opens on March 11. According to Alex “The Bronx Bomber” Ramos, “Rick Schroder and Black Cloud represent everything that is important to the brotherhood of boxing. He tells our story in a beautiful film about the dignity of a young warrior and the determination that makes a man a champion—not just in boxing, but life. Our motto is “The Undisputed Champions for Dignity!” If you don’t know what I mean, you need to see this film,” said Ramos.
The Retired Boxers Foundation mission is to assist retired professional boxers in the transition from their glorious days in the ring to a dignified retirement. For more information on the Retired Boxers Foundation, founded by Alex “The Bronx Bomber” Ramos, visit their site at www.retiredboxers.org.