Despite Nolte, a Stale Fortune Cookie

Rating: 5/10 (12 April 2010)

You quickly realize when you're watching "Peaceful Warrior" that you're getting into what amounts to many poorly written scenes, and a lot of teeny college student-type frivolity. The good parts of this movie solely revolve around Nick Nolte gracing the movie with his acting power lifting the movie from utter dud to passable. I didn't care much for the main character nor all the melodrama that surrounded him with either young women or his fellow gymnasts. In fact Scott Mechlowicz grated pretty well. The motorcycle accident afforded little empathy for his situation seeing as how brainless it was to begin with. And his emotional acting out was pathetic. However is "training" scenes away from the gym were entertaining and Nolte a kick as Zen Buddhist mentor, yet this movie cant even match the likes of the Karate Kid formula, a movie that had the right touches of romance, humor, and teenage development - a better and comparable movie.