Unbeatable

Well that was the most pleasant surprise I've had watching a movie in a long time.

I had no idea what to expect in this MMA film. The trailer was fairly terrible but the reviews were great. Who to believe? Usually, it's the other way around - great trailer and terrible reviews. But I have a fascination with anything that sniffs of martial arts and bit the bullet.

Charming, funny, real life situations, nail biting fights (no idea if any of this stuff is actually possible but it looked good,) and a super cast.

The first five minutes had me a bit confused and then the movie became solid and was totally enjoyable.

Dont waste your time watching this garbage movie... You will repent watching this. Worst direction... Worst action... No action at all.. amateur hour... These reviews here must be paid... Doesn't even deserve a single... I was bored outta my mind watching this piece of ***t... This review is coming from a guy who loves action movies.. n loves movies like... Rocky series... Undisputed series... Redbelt... Warrior... Raging phoenix... Chocolate.... blood and bone.. never back down..

More solid than I first thought, but also more sentimental than needed be. But the execution saves it all.

This is a story where 3 sets of lives comes together in Macau: a ex-champ boxer, an aimless young man, and a down and out mother-daughter.

So it goes through the 3 acts: the background, the middle struggles, and the triumphant finish. All predictable, all about redemption (again). The sentiments are just full to the brim. The MMA sequence are good enough to behold. And there are the comic reliefs to breakups the mundaneness. However, the execution, the shots, the editing, the color, the settings, holds the atmosphere, tension together into a nice pace.

You can see how the last fight ends miles away. But no complaints here as it was well done.

It really makes me wonder if the Chinese think you can train to be an MMA fighter in two months, but this is the same country that thinks kung fu fighters can fly, so maybe that's the logic behind it. The surrounding stories were interesting and maybe if the guy was training to play competitive Solitaire, it would have been believable. But the whole time I was watching it, I was distracted by the thought of real MMA fighters who train their entire lives for what this movie makes a mockery of.

If you are an MMA or MA fan, you probably already have a list of favourites. Films like Bloodsport, Kiss of the Dragon, Undefeated 2.

Most well-known films in this category feature an escalating series of fights. The fights are usually the backbone of the film, so to speak.

A few entries try to build a solid backstory, and some even go so far as to make the backstory more important than the fight scenes.

In this last category I would include Blood and Bone, one of my all time faves, and highly recommended.

Unbeatable is in this category. It is mainly backstory with only occasional action. However where it differs from top contenders in this genre is that the fighting and the backstory-arc do not seem connected, they seem at odds. So, no matter how interesting the backstory is (and it is) and no matter how simpatico the characters are (and they are), this film never quite decides just where it is going or just how it is going to get there.

It is nonetheless very well written, very well acted and very well directed. And if you stick it through you will get a "feel good" life lesson as good as any in modern cinema.

Recommended.