Born a Champion

Really enjoyed the storyline and the characters in this martial arts film. the acting was solid and the story kept you connected throughout. was not in touch with sean patrick flanery's acting although i have seen him from time to time. i had to go back and watch some of his previous movies and have become a new fan. loved katrina bowden in tucker and dale vs. evil and she had a moving role in this movie. watch this you won't be disappointed.

Not having heard anything about this movie, I expected a straight-to-video type martial arts film based on BJJ - considering there seems to be a few cash grabs out at the moment. I figured it would be half way decent because Sean Patrick Flanery is a solid actor. What I didn't expect was a damn good story with great performances all around. I was also surprised to learn that Sean is a legit BJJ black belt, which is obvious as soon as he gets on the mat. Seeing this movie more than makes up for having to sit through the last 5 bad ones.

Not a big martial arts movie guy, so I wasn't expecting much. Was very pleasantly surprised. Good story line, decent acting and nice flow. More or a Rocky-beats-the-odds than a martial arts movie. The wife loved it as well.

It is truly a love letter to jiu-jitsu, passionately crafted by people with genuine love (and possibly obsession, but not in a geeky way) for the martial art. As such, expect a total package that represents said love and/or obsession. Everything is beautiful and above standard.

The script is so ambitious that it never settles on a single theme for more than a few minutes. Equal parts sports drama, MMA, romance, inspirational, motivational, and yesterday's lunch. Strangely it is precisely this lack of traditional story-telling -- an anti-Rocky if you like -- that keeps it interesting. Flanery, softspoken and sincere, is perfectly suited to ground the effort, and Alex Ranarivelo has the solid skills needed to keep things moving. The audience never gets quite what it expects -- the ending makes that more than clear -- and therein lies its charm.