Don't Waste Your Time

Rating: 1/10 (1 April 2007)

This may not be the worst movie I've ever seen, but it's certainly in the bottom three. I hate to say it because they gave me a free ticket, but the film manages to be both creepy and incredibly boring at the same time. It's a cheap rip-off of 1984's The Karate Kid, without karate, a kid, or Pat Morita. (Yes, it's that bad.) I kept hoping the main character's leg would shatter into a million pieces, as in the opening scene, so I could leave the theater.
It's really too bad, because I hoped that the marketing ploy of giving away thousands of free tickets would prove successful, so other films would repeat it. But, this movie is not worth my time, even when the ticket is free.
It says a great deal about how bad this film is when I say that the best scenes involve shots of men's gymnastics. I'm sure it's a demanding sport, but it's not visually the most exciting thing that ever happened on film.
I never developed any empathy for or rapport with the main character. In fact, although I don't usually approve of on-screen violence, I kept hoping he would crash his motorcycle head-on into an 18-wheeler, just to put us both out of our misery. Pride is a better sports movie. The Shooter is a better action flick. Namesake is a better exploration of spirituality and cultures. I finally left the theater and went home to do something fun like organize my linen closet -- the movie is that bad!