If you liked Karate Kid you will like Never Back Down. This somewhat predictable flick is a tale of a young man who moves to a new city and new school after getting into some trouble. He is having a hard time adapting to his new life. The situation is worsened by a video on the internet showing the event that forced his move.
Our hot headed hero, Jake (Sean Faris), collides with the schools smack-talkin bully(Cam Gigandet) Ryan. Despite his all of his boxing prowess, he is no match for Ryan’s mixed martial arts fighting style. After a serious pounding, Jake decides to beat (literally) this jerk at his own game. Max (Evan Peters), another Ryan's victims, leads Jake to a gym where the two train to have their revenge. You can expect many edge-of-your-seat graphic fight scenes and a montage or two.
The sappy drama seems to bog down the plot. The history with his father, mom doesn’t like fighting and setting an example for his brother all get in the way. Why can’t a guy get the crap beat out of him and then want revenge? Please don’t teach me a lesson. If I wanted a moral, I would see Aesop’s Fables on Ice. Then there is the token girlfriend, Baja (Amber Heard), over whom there is much drama and tension. We cannot have a movie without that, now can we.
I was pleased to see an openly gay character in the film that was not loud and effeminate. The nameless character openly flirts with Jake without being chided for his overt remarks.
Even if you do not like sports films, which I don’t, you will fall in love with Jake and cheer him through till the end. I cannot suggest that you race to the theater to see this one, but catch it on DVD if you can.
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