Fat City (1972)

True 70s gritty realism here, Stacy Keach is a washed up boxer in Stockton, California who encounters young Jeff Bridges at a local Y and encourages him to take up the gloves. The film follows these two over a period of time as their boxing careers, and love lives, take opposite trajectories. Stockton is shown as a grim, depressing locale where the only jobs available are farm labor and the only entertainment is the local bar. In his early 30s, Keach somehow is as beat down as the city where he lives, whereas the only a handful of years younger Bridges is his exact opposite. Thus ends my unplanned mini Jeff Bridges marathon.  

Oscar nomination: Best Actress in a Supporting Role