 In the North American Great Depression, the former successful boxer James Braddock loses all his possessions and savings with the crash of the stock market. His beloved wife Mae Braddock and their three children survive to starvation and lack of heating and the daily difficulties supported by their love. In 1934, when Jim s couch and manager Joe Gould offers to him a chance to return to boxing, he becomes the symbol of hope of hopeless people in a ruined nation.