Movie Review for Never Back Down (2008)

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Review #622 of 365
Movie Review of Never Back Down (2008) [PG-13] 110 minutes
WIP™ Scale: $10.50
Where Viewed: United Artists Denver Pavilions Stadium 15, Denver, CO
When Seen: 15 March 2008
Time: 11:10 pm
DVD Release Date: 29 July 2008 (click date to purchase or pre-order)
Film's Official Website • Film's Trailer

Soundtrack: order the CD below

Directed by: Jeff Wadlow (Cry_Wolf)
Written by: Chris Hauty (Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco)

Featured Cast (Where You Might Remember Him/Her From):
Sean Faris (Yours, Mine and Ours) • Amber Heard (Alpha Dog) • Cam Gigandet ("The O.C.") • Evan Peters ("The Invasion") • Leslie Hope ("Commander in Chief") • Djimon Hounsou (Eragon) • Wyatt Smith (The 40 Year Old Virgin ) • Affion Crockett (Welcome Home, Roscoe Jenkins ) • Neil Brown Jr (Mr. 3000 ) • Lauren Leech (Sydney White) • Tilky Jones (The Guardian) • Steven Crowley (A Memoir to My Former Self)

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In what could have been the heroic equivalent to The Karate Kid for the XYZ generations, unfortunately Jeff Wadlow's direction of Chris Hauty's screenplay Never Back Down starring Sean Faris, Djimon Hounsou, and Cam Gigandet "taps out" instead sacrificing principles, morality, and inspiration for street thug basal immorality, gang brutality, and way too much drippy perspiration. With a plot virtually lifted…err…updated from The Karate Kid, a high school kid, Jake Tyler (Sean Faris), is uprooted to Florida so that his little brother, Charlie (Wyatt Smith), can attend a tennis academy on a full scholarship. Their father was recently killed in a drunken driving accident, and their working mom, Margot (Leslie Hope) is doing everything in her power to keep the family afloat. The move is, theoretically, supposed to be good for Jake too as he's had trouble keeping his anger in check on the football field making his way onto YouTube™ a time or two. Unfortunately, the hope for the renewal for which Lesie was hoping, ends quickly when Jake's former reputation draws him into the world of underground teen fight clubs. The 'king' in Orlando is an extremely wealthy kid named Ryan McCarthy (Cam Gigandet) whose father put him into karate lessons at age two. Bored with his life in the lap of opulent luxury, Ryan has taken up mixed martial arts and become the champion of the "Beat Down" competition for the past two years. Meanwhile, he throws gigantic parties had his father's mansion accompanied by organized fighting clubs. Ryan's girlfriend, Baja Miller (Amber Heard), catches Jake's eye in English class when he's the only one who seems to see that The Illiad might be about something other than Achilles and his blood-lust, leading her to be the one to bait Jake into attending one of Ryan's parties where he ends up getting the life nearly kicked out of him. To his credit, Jake, who really is a good, but troubled kid, tries to avoid the fight, but when Ryan slanders his father's name and then poses a difficult moral question, Jake unleashes his fury, only to get the swift end of Ryan's more well-trained, superior foot. Refusing to "tap out"—the modern form of saying "uncle"—Jake ends up unconscious and delivered to his bed badly beaten and bruised. He awakens to find every fiber of his being in pain and unable to find either the courage or the strength to return to school that day.
…a film from which it's probably best to "tap out" early.
He does, however, get advice from his one and only friend, Max (Evan Peters) who urges his to take on mixed martial arts training from the master Jean Roqua (Djimon Hounsou) whom he believes, somewhat secretly, will empower Jake to become the next "Beat Down" champion and the guy who dethrones Ryan McCarthy. Jake agrees to, at least, check out Jean Roqua's gym, and is quickly persuaded that he wants this more than anything, though convincing Roqua to accept him as a student proves slightly more challenging. Roqua has only one rule to which Jake must adhere, "No fighting outside the gym." Jake agrees, fingers crossed in his mind, and the training begins.

While there's no "wax on, wax off" or balancing on one foot on a pylon like a crane, Roqua's philosophy and tactics would seem a normal evolution from that of the style of Mr. Miyagi. The chief difference and simultaneous disappointment for the choices made by the writer and the director is that the outlet for the martial arts is not set in either some distant future and lawless land or some major national competition, instead it is set in the unfortunately growing and all too real world of underground teen fight clubs, a growing phenomenon especially in affluent areas of the nation, see for example. Once again, we see an example of Hollywood glamorizing one of the more dangerous and unseemly aspects of adolescent development in today's world rather than taking "the right step" and setting this very same plot into something legal. The same plot could have been used with any of a hundred other outlets (even a national karate tournament…hmm). This kind of irresponsible outlet/venue for the protagonist's emotional baggage is reprehensible and should know that it will spawn dozens and dozens of copycat incidents around the globe. This isn't just a little squabbling among boys, this is brutal, potentially lethal, almost feudal, highly trained street fighting sort of like the video game Tekken only with real people. Director Jeff Wadlow even chose to accompany some of the blows, mostly those taken by Jake, with video game effects that show the bone crunching x-ray views of his insides. The problem is that these aren't video game characters, these are real people—well, they are characters played by actors. The point is that they are role models for another generation of young people. It will be very hard for the producers to fail to take responsibility for the copycats when this is such an obvious glamorization of this non-sport. When it was loser, psychotic grownups in the social allegory Fight Club, it was one thing, but this is teenage kids many without formal training just fighting. It's not a pretty sight on the socially responsible side of things. There is no possible way that this movie should have been Rated PG-13. This film should be rated R or NC-17 at the least. Not because it's full of foul language, nudity/sex, but because parents and guardians should be warned as to what message the movie sends to young people.

As far as the acting and rest of the story go, Sean Faris holds his own as the leading man with a fierce smile and beauty mark. His deep brown eyes, suave charm, and mysterious sensibilities, were introduced to most USAers in the short lived "Life as We Know It" and "Reunion", make him a possible heir to the sorts of roles that Tom Cruise got after Risky Business. Given something more serious but fun next like Cruise's Top Gun, Mr. Faris has potential. His serious side and emotional command comes through in the film when his character must face his demons. While some will surely doubt either the originality or the believability of his cathartic moment with his mentor / sensei, Jean Roqua, those who have followed his career and seen both his ups and downs, know him to be the real thing.

…Djimon Hounsou probably has no business being in this film.
Double Academy Award® nominee Djimon Hounsou probably has no business being in this film. His talents are mostly wasted, except when his character too participates in Jake's cathartic moment with his own personal unraveling. Both men deserved something a bit more poignant than that of which this film was capable. Cam Gigandet demonstrated himself a very worthy both arch villain and ultra-slick cool dude portraying the morally bankrupt Ryan McCarthy with potent physical good looks. Amber Heard gets left semi sort of holding the bag along with Evan Peters as Jake Tyler's sidekicks. Both characters border on the archetypal which would be so bad except that their archetypes of recycled archetype derivatives—sort of like being listed as a preservative on the ingredient label for something that is hermetically sealed and couldn't rot if it wanted to, in other words, borderline useless.

It's practically too bad that Mr. Hauty and Mr. Wadlow along with the producers couldn't see that they had a potential gem or diamond in the rough here that could have served as an appropriate touchstone film for a new generation where an underdog sticks up for himself and friends to overcome a villainous bully. Instead, by taking and glamorizing illegal fight clubs, they have created a film from which it's probably best to "tap out" early.

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Cast Members
Sean Faris • Amber Heard • Cam Gigandet
Evan Peters • Leslie Hope • Djimon Hounsou
Wyatt Smith • Affion Crockett • Neil Brown Jr
Lauren Leech • Steven Crowley
Director
Jeff Wadlow
Writer
Chris Hauty
DVD
VHS
Review-lite Never Back Down (2008) [max of 150 words]
In what could have been the heroic equivalent to The Karate Kid for the XYZ generations, unfortunately Jeff Wadlow's direction of Chris Hauty's screenplay Never Back Down starring Sean Faris, Djimon Hounsou, and Cam Gigandet "taps out" instead sacrificing principles, morality, and inspiration for street thug basal immorality, gang brutality, and way too much drippy perspiration. By using and glamorizing illegal fight clubs, they have created a film from which it's probably best to "tap out" early.
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