THE CANADIAN PRESS
LAS VEGAS — Former UFC light-heavyweight champion Quinton (Rampage) Jackson has already had his close-up, as B.A. Baracus in the movie remake of "The A-Team."
The movie spotlight shines this fall on Matt (The Hammer) Hamill, his opponent in Saturday night’s main event at UFC 130, when "Hamill" opens in theatres.
The film is the inspirational story of Hamill, who was born deaf. It depicts Hamill’s youth but focuses mostly on 1997 when — as a sophomore walk-on at the Rochester Institute of Technology, which has a deaf school — he won the first of three NCAA Division 3 wrestling championships.
"Hamill" is a study of perseverance. Movie-goers will likely wipe away a tear and leave with a healthy respect for Matt Hamill, as well as a better grasp of deaf life.
Directed by Oren Kaplan, the film uses sound or lack thereof as well as subtitles, often with words missing, to gets its message across.
At the heart of the movie is a deft, understated performance by Russell Harvard, the deaf actor who plays Hamill. You may remember Harvard for his brief appearance as Daniel Day-Lewis’ grown-up son H.W. at the end of "There Will be Blood."
"Hamill" has been entered in six film festivals to date — Newport Beach, Florida, AFI, Miami, Cleveland and Philadelphia — and won audience awards in every one.
"There’s been an overwhelming response to the film, which has been amazing … People really respond to Matt’s story. I think it’s universal," said co-writers Joseph McKelheer.
In real life or on the movie screen, it’s hard not to root for Matt Hamill.
"I’m just trying to be who I am," he tells reporters with a broad smile. "I’m happy the way I am."
Like the fighter himself, the people behind "Hamill" never gave up. They spent more than five years on the project, battling those who were more interested in big names than a big-hearted storyline.
McKelheer and co-writer Eben Kostbar both act in the movie. And they sought out deaf actors when they could to make the story more authentic.
"We came in at Ground Zero," McKelheer said of deaf culture. "So it took us some time to accurately reflect how to portray that community, because initially we weren’t doing things right. So we hired deaf producers and deaf crew members and we really tried to get that side of the story right as well … our learning curve was slow on the whole process."
Finding the right deaf actor to play the lead was "easy and then became really hard," McKelheer said.
When they saw "There Will Be Blood," they thought Harvard was "amazing and he held his own with Daniel Day-Lewis, which is incredible."
But they had second thoughts, wondering if he could play the part of an athlete, and kicked off a national search for someone else.
They eventually went back to their first choice.
"It was a really tough casting experience." said McKelheer, noting they needed an athletic deaf actor who could use his voice. "We realized there’s not many people that can play Matt. And I thought Russell did an amazing job."
Hamill, 34, has watched the film more than 50 times and says the scenes that show him and his grandfather together strike a chord every time.
Teased and bullied by kids growing up because he was different, Hamill credits his grandfather for teaching him respect, honour and pride.
"I have learned how to become a real strong person, no matter what the consequences," he says. "I just stay strong. People make fun of me, I just smile."
The movie shows how big a part his grandfather — portrayed by veteran actor Raymond J. Barry ("Justified") — played in his life.
"My grandfather is the man I look up to. He was really special but he’s in my spirit," Hamill said.
"I’ve got a big fight Saturday … I just want him to be proud of me," he added after a screening Thursday night.
Hamill has proved to be an inspiration to the deaf community and others. The six-foot-one 205-pounder says he gets 3,000 emails a week.
And he made one 12-year-old deaf fan’s day Thursday when he took a break from a media workout to chat with him and pose for pictures.
As a movie, "Hamill" refuses to take the easy way out by focusing on the fighter’s success in the UFC and increasingly popular world of mixed martial arts. While the opening shows the Hamill character entering the arena for a UFC bout, the movie then focuses on his formative years.
A powerful wrestler with heavy hands, Hamill entered the UFC by way of "The Ultimate Fighter" reality TV show.
As a deaf fighter, Hamill — who lip reads — faces unique challenges. Fighters have several cornermen, who yell instructions at them throughout the fight.
Duff Holmes, Hamill’s head coach and manager, has tried everything from signs and hand or arm signals to just standing up.
Against former middleweight champion Rich Franklin (who has a cameo in the movie), they got orange boards and some reflective tape from some helpful police officers and used the signs to tell their fighter what stage of the round he was at.
"As far as training a deaf fighter, it’s probably the most helpless feeling there is in the world because it’s almost like watching somebody drown and you can’t save them," Holmes told the Canadian Press at the time. "Even though he’s never drowning, he’s never really been in trouble in a fight, it’s just really difficult because we can see what’s going on, we can hear his opponent’s corner yelling out things and we just cannot communicate that to him during the fight.
"So it’s a very helpless feeling, but it’s something he’s known his own life. He doesn’t know any better and as his trainers … we don’t know any better, so it’s just the way it is and we accept it and we go with it."
Holmes knows the signals and signs come at a price. Hamill has to look away from his opponent to see them.
The hard-hitting Jackson (31-8) is a 2-1 favourite to win Saturday night but Hamill (11-2) is no stranger to going against the odds.
He has already defeated one former champion, winning a decision over Tito (The Huntington Beach Bad Boy) Ortiz last time out at UFC 121. That fight extended his UFC win streak to five.
