Salvable is the kind of film that doesn’t rely on flash or spectacle but creeps into your gut and sits there. It’s gritty, raw, and soaked in realism. It revolves around Sal, played with a slow-burning intensity by Toby Kebbell, a former boxing sensation now reduced to a shadow of his former self.
Instead of the roars of the crowd, he now hears the quiet shuffle of slippers and the distant hum of the TV in a Welsh old age home, where he works as a caregiver. It’s honest work, and Sal does it with grace. He’s gentle with the patients, dutiful with the chores, and for a while, it seems like maybe he’s found peace in simplicity.
But there’s a weariness in him that never quite leaves. His life has been one long fall from grace ever since he lost a major boxing match that wrecked his career. His days now are a routine of caregiving by day and getting punched for cash in low-rent boxing clubs by night.
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He still trains with his aging coach Welly, though mostly for sanity rather than a title shot. Welly sees the sadness in him but knows better than to force a man who’s already lost too much.
Then along comes Vince.
Shia LaBeouf plays Vince with the kind of manic charm that makes you nervous. He’s out of prison and immediately makes a mess of Sal’s fragile routine. Vince is baffled, furious even to see his once-mighty friend scraping by, practically invisible to the world.
To him, Sal is wasting his life, and Vince comes bearing a gift: temptation. He offers Sal a way out. Fast money. Danger. A bit of that old thrill. At first, Sal resists. He still believes that doing the right thing, no matter how unrewarding, is better than risking it all again.
But life doesn’t stay still. Sal is haunted by his past failures, tormented by the strained relationship with his daughter, Molly, and crushed by financial instability. Molly is growing up, and he’s missing it. His ex-wife doesn’t want him around.
And then comes the straw: Molly’s school calls him after weed is found in her bag. The disappointment is crushing. Sal begs the school principal not to involve her mother. He tries to be the parent he thinks he never was. He tells Molly that mistakes don’t define her, but she has to look beyond her current world and aim for something bigger.
It’s the kind of advice that comes from a man who’s spent his whole life wishing someone had told him the same.
Vince keeps knocking on the door, though. He brings Sal into the world of underground boxing, where rules are optional and blood is the currency. Sal agrees to referee a fight. It’s not glamorous, but the cash is more than he earns all month.
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But trouble shows up like clockwork. A gang member accuses Sal of being a cop and demands that he prove his loyalty. They force him into the ring to fight Leon, a brawler with more ego than training.
Sal pounds him easily but refuses to deliver the final blow that might kill him. That moment of mercy leaves Vince in debt, fifteen grand to some unpleasant people.
Now they’re out of options. Vince proposes a jewelry store heist to settle the debt and make some quick money. It’s a ridiculous plan, barely thought through,h but Sal is desperate. He wants to buy a house and start over with Molly. He’s already lost her once, and he can’t bear the thought of fading from her life again. So he says yes.
The robbery, of course, goes wrong. The safe is empty. The store owner fights back. Vince panics and accidentally shoots Sal in the leg. It’s messy and sad, like everything else in their lives. Sal is bleeding out and begs Vince to leave. He’s thinking ahead. The cops are coming, and he doesn’t want both of them caught. Vince tries to help but finally listens.
What happens next is perhaps the most touching part of the film. Sal, wounded and in pain, drags himself out of the store. He doesn’t head for safety. He heads for the ring.
That’s where he’s supposed to be that night, paid to lose another meaningless fight. He could collapse in a ditch or hide from the law, but instead, he walks, barely, toward the one place that has always given him purpose.
Vince sees him, and something in him shifts. Maybe it’s guilt. Maybe it’s friendship. Maybe it’s the first time he realizes that his choices have ruined someone else’s life. He makes a decision. He fires a shot into the air to draw the police and allows himself to be arrested. For once, Vince chooses to take the fall, giving Sal a slim chance at escape.
Sal doesn’t get far. He reaches the beach, collapses, and stares at the sea. His mind drifts to memories of Molly as a child. Her laughter. Her innocence. The little moments that made life feel worth it. Just when it seems like he might slip away, his eyes open.
It’s unclear if he’ll live or die, but that flicker of consciousness says something. Maybe he isn’t done fighting.
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The future doesn’t look bright. Sal is seriously injured. If he ends up in a hospital, there’s every chance he’ll be arrested too. His old job is gone. Molly’s trust may be shaken again. The dream of stability, of a real home with her, slips further out of reach.
And Vince? He’s probably looking at a long sentence. He was caught red-handed, armed, and firing a gun.
Still, Salvable doesn’t wrap things up in a neat bow. It’s not interested in happy endings. It’s about people who’ve messed up so badly that even redemption comes with bruises. Sal tried to be good. He followed the rules, stayed in his lane, and still ended up broke, lonely, and forgotten. Then he tried to cut corners, and everything blew up again.
And yet, in that final moment, he opens his eyes. Maybe he’s not beyond saving after all. Maybe he’s got one more fight in him, not for glory, but for something quieter and more enduring. A second chance.
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