Never Back Down aka MMA Kid...

Rating: 4/10 (1 April 2010)

Well this is a basically a run out of the mill, average Martial Arts movie with some novelties thrown into the mix. A great actor like Mr. Hounsou wasted his talent in this one, though I was surprised and happy that some of the action scenes and especially the training segments made this predictable junk rather entertaining. There is also a lot of eye candy here to be seen, pretty girls in tight dresses and shirtless, built men who clobber on each other, if that is your kind of thing.
Like I mentioned earlier some of the action scenes are pretty OK. We got rolling cradles, arm bars, triangle choke holds etc. I love jujitsu and traditional wrestling so I thought the filmmakers indeed did quite a good job in showing those techniques on the silver screen, It is quite overdone of course, It is a Hollywood movie after all. However the story lacks, most of the characters are downright dumb and annoying, you have to suspend your disbelief quite a lot to swallow any of this.
Now, many people are arguing about the spirituality this movie lacks and I agree there is none. It is a prime example how the American media butchered the truly graceful arts of VALE TUDO etc. It has been botched for a mere violent circus attraction. I never agreed with cage fighting in the first place, at least there are some rules in it these days. Back in the day when the UFC was in its baby shoes, it reminded me more of a bloody gladiatorial challenge then anything else.
Do not get me wrong, I was also caught in the mix and watched UFC, PRIDE every now and then. There are also a lot of fighters I have respect for but some are just knuckleheads that enter the cage for a beat-down and to let go of their violent tendencies. At least better in a cage then on the streets.
This movie emphasizes on the knucklehead factor quite a lot. Its even a bit scary. The movie wants you to believe that brawling is the coolest thing on earth, a real chick magnetizer and the answer to all our problems...reality is much harsher and unforgiving. Youngsters these days group on you and at least in this movie we have one on one fights which seem to be fair for the most parts.
Nobody takes knifes or guns to the fight so maybe that is the spirituality the director wanted to express. It is not realistic but pretends to be, I just hope that young males and females do not get the the impression that if you train for a few days you can become the next UFC champion. With every form of martial arts it takes years of dedication and discipline even more so in this sport because it emphasizes on so many applications such as grapples and strikes.
I repeat it is still just a movie so just sit back and enjoy the action for what it is worth. If you look for a realistic, spiritual outlook on martial arts better watch the Japanese movie black belt. That is a true martial arts movie. If you look for entertaining Kong Fu flicks, well as a fan you should know. Check out the jet Li's, Donnie Yens etc.
As appendix, if you are into MMA and there are not many action movies that promote this sport, I can recommend flash point with Donnie Yen. the last fight makes totally up for the lacks that we find in that movie. Red Belt deserves a mentioning too but it suffers all too much from the same problem this movie has, it pretends to be something that it is not.