Movies : Movie Reviews

Last Updated: Jan 1, 2009 - 6:19:39 PM

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Never Back Down From Seeing a Good Fight Movie By Hervé St-Louis Mar 16, 2008 - 2:43:59 AM

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Produced in: United States
Running Time: 1 hr. 46 min.
Release Date: March 14th, 2008 (wide)
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for mature thematic material involving intense sequences of violence, some sexuality, partying and language - all involving teens.
Distributors: Summit Entertainment, LLC
Starring: Sean Faris, Amber Heard, Djimon Hounsou, Cam Gigandet, Evan Peters
Directed by: Jeff Wadlow
Produced by: Craig Baumgarten, David Zelon

A high school student and football player, Jack Tyler moves with his mother and younger brother from Ohio to Orlando, Florida, when his brother obtains a scholarship to play tennis. Poorer than the rich kids at his new local high school, Tyler might have remained a pariah, until fellow student Max Cooperman lets everyone know of his rougher past back in Ohio and his skills at disabling opponents with his strength. Now, local underground mixed martial arts fighters want him to join the fun, but Tyler won’t. How many humiliations must he endure before he decides to fight back rival Ryan McCarthy, who is a much better mixed martial artist?



Many have compared this film to The Karate Kid, and in structure the two are similar. But Never Back Down is actually much more entertaining than its ancestor.  Maybe it’s the faster pace and better storytelling and increased violence, but Never Back Down, although a typical teen movie with an extremely predictable B plot, is actually quite entertaining. The best thing about this movie is that it gives viewers what they really want to see; well choreographed fight scenes that we’ll all be practicing in the parking lot after a few beers and more guts to take a couple of punches in the stomach by your best friend.

So in all, Never Back Down talks to male viewers and makes us feel good about being guys and liking fights a lot, without falling into the spiritual crypto mumble jumble about a guy’s honour. It is mindless entertainment that was actually far more interesting than the last batch of movies I saw, including Jumper , Vantage Point and 10,000 BC. This movie doesn’t take itself too seriously and although it will not win many awards, it has the potential to be new Fight Club and something guys will be talking about for quite a while. It should also improve the viewership of the UFC, the Ultimate Fighting Championship, which is the professional end of what happens in films like Never Back Down.



In tune with the times, Never Back Down popularizes a sport that is practiced widely and not very publicized outside of the official channels. It also makes clever use of the always online culture of social networking, where whatever you do is broadcasted to the world whether you like it or not. I like the spontaneity of this film. Just like Cloverfield and Vantage Point, Never Back Down captures an element of the digital world around us, but unlike the former films, it actually moves one step ahead into the real fighting culture. Unlike the other films, editing out the social networking aspects of Never Back Down would not have damaged the film very much. This is not the true about the others.

Like I said, the plot was way too predictable and the tears of actor Sean Faris, a bit unbelievable. The actors also looked too old to be portraying high school students.  Nevertheless, the move was quite enjoyable and better than I expected.



The cinematography tried to mix some aspect of the digital culture, by having shots start as digicam captures or videos played on cell phones and Web blogs. There was a little bit of CSI influence with x-ray shots of Tyler’s bones and ribs as he gets punched real hard. It also had a lot of slow motion shots to make us see better the fights and absorb their effects. All of these were well edited and added to the dynamic and fast pacing of the film. I can say that no scene was wasted or unnecessary. The movie actually felt longer than it really was. I strongly recommend this film.

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