For those who stick around for the first half hour or so, we're given teaspoons of information about the central character. He's a boxing trainer and a former fighter raised by a loving mother and a rage-filled, pugilistic dad who thought nothing of blackening his wife's eyes in front of his seven kids. Freddie's hands shake and he walks haltingly because he suffers from Parkinson's disease, an ailment thought to be linked to his life of fighting.
For all of the blows he has taken, Roach comes across as a thoughtful, even mellow man, someone who has found contentment as a teacher and mentor rather than as a punisher. He looks a lot more like Philip Seymour Hoffman than Sylvester Stallone.
Roach's Wild Card Boxing Club may be located in Hollywood, but it's hardly glamorous. Its denizens are a mix of young strivers and washed-up palookas with misshapen faces. It's a family. It's a freak show. There is violence in the air. There is blood. But there is also love.
Created by Peter Berg, "Freddie" is clearly inspired by the work of filmmaker Frederick Wiseman, whose film "Boxing Gym" recently appeared on PBS. Wiseman has created exhaustive and illuminating documentaries about subjects ranging from mental institutions to the Idaho legislature, from American high schools to the Paris ballet. At their most rewarding his films are completely immersive events, allowing viewers an incomparable appreciation of their subject. When they are not long (his "Belfast, Maine" runs four hours), they seem long. At their most taxing, these films are not only like watching paint dry, they ask you to watch the painters apply the paint in the first place. After watching them carefully open the paint cans.
As you can see, I'm of two minds about this kind of documentary. On one hand, I'm struck by its audacity and fidelity to telling a warts-and-all story at the speed of real life. On the other hand, I always come back to director Alfred Hitchcock, who, when asked why films can't be like "real life," replied that screen drama is like real life "with the dull bits cut out."
TONIGHT'S OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
-- A crisis puts everything in jeopardy on "A Gifted Man" (8 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14).
-- "Shark Tank" (8 p.m., ABC, TV-PG) returns with new would-be entrepreneurs.
-- Danger ricochets on a bullet train on "Chuck" (9 p.m., NBC, TV-PG).
-- Hidden cameras capture strangers in ethical quandaries on a new season of "Primetime: What Would You Do?" (9 p.m., ABC).
-- Childhood abuse evokes inner demons on "Grimm" (9 p.m., NBC, TV-14).
-- The parallel division faces new challenges on "Fringe" (9 p.m., Fox, TV-14).
-- A broken rig sparks a waiting game on "Gold Rush" (9 p.m., Discovery, TV-PG).
-- A suspect in a robbery has a police connection on "Blue Bloods" (10 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14).
-- A punk couple frustrates a wedding planner on "Portlandia" (10 p.m., IFC, TV-14).
CULT CHOICE
A recently released thief adapts to new technology in the 1971 thriller "The Anderson Tapes" (10 p.m., TCM, TV-14), directed by Sidney Lumet. Sean Connery, Dyan Cannon and Martin Balsam star.
SERIES NOTES
A Greek tragedy looms on "Kitchen Nightmares" (8 p.m., Fox, TV-14) ... Harsh words in the Twin Cities on "Remodeled" (8 p.m., CW, r, TV-14).
Mac looks back on a dark day on "CSI: NY" (9 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14) ... "Dateline" (10 p.m., NBC) ... "20/20" (10 p.m., ABC).
LATE NIGHT
Dana Carvey and Los Campesinos! appear on "Late Show With David Letterman" (11:35 p.m., CBS) ... Jay Leno welcomes Steven Tyler, Ryan Seacrest, Randy Jackson and Sarah Colonna on "The Tonight Show" (11:35 p.m., NBC).
Terrence Howard and Filter appear on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" (midnight, ABC).
Joan Rivers and Stacy Keibler visit "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon" (12:35 a.m., NBC) ... Craig Ferguson hosts Larry the Cable Guy and 3 Doors Down on "The Late Late Show" (12:35 a.m., CBS).
(Kevin McDonough can be reached at kevin.tvguy@gmail.com.)
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