A period piece disguised as a martial arts film.

Rating: 8/10 (13 August 2019)

Seriously, this film could not be more 2007-'08. Not only does it feature a great soundtrack of many of the hit songs of '07 (including two singles by "The Bravery") but it also fairly encapsulates the rise of YouTube as well as the underground MMA fighting scene that also rapidly began to acclimate to the mainstream, as both services became public only two years prior in 2005 (Ultimate Fighter was the first non-PPV UFC broadcast).
However, I'll admit, the film may not be historians first choice to put in a time capsule. The camera work was a little bit claustrophobic for my taste, as you may notice most of the shots are very up-close and above the torso. On the acting and directing angle, Evan Peters' as Max Cooperman was a bit over the top. However, the writing for the character was redeeming, as he didn't turn out to be the ineffectual sidekick I assumed his character would be (I remember his face from "Kick-Ass").
The other acting performances are quite tame, but the meat is really on Djimon Hounsou, who plays an MMA instructor in the film, and his performance is very, very good here. The film also offered some cool visual effects and techniques to really emphasize the hard hitting/fast action moments during the fight scenes as well.
Overall, "Never Back Down" sets out on what it was supposed to do. It does it's job well and doesn't really hold itself back. 8/10 scores are safe recommendations and most likely re-watches from me. And did I say that the soundtrack is full of bangers?