Redbelt (2008)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

David Mamet

Writer (WGA):

David Mamet (written by)

Release Date:

9 May 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Sport

Tagline:

There's always a way out. You just have to find it.

Plot:

A fateful event leads to a job in the film business for top mixed-martial arts instructor Mike Terry. Though he refuses to participate in prize bouts, circumstances conspire to force him to consider entering such a competition.

Plot Keywords:

Fight | Debt | Bar | Gift | Jujitsu

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Max Martini	...	Joe Collins
Matt Cable	...	Academy Fighter
Chiwetel Ejiofor	...	Mike Terry
Alice Braga	...	Sondra Terry
Jose Pablo Cantillo	...	Snowflake
Emily Mortimer	...	Laura Black
Cathy Cahlin Ryan	...	Gini Collins
Luciana Souza	...	Singer in Bar
Cyril Takayama	...	The Magician (as Cyril Takata)
Scott Barry	...	Billy the Bartender
Ricky Jay	...	Marty Brown
Randy Couture	...	Dylan Flynn
John Machado	...	Ricardo Silva
Rodrigo Santoro	...	Bruno Silva
Ricardo Wilke	...	Eduardo

MPAA:

Rated R for strong language.

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Portuguese | Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

South Korea:15 | USA:R (certificate #43844) | Canada:14A (Alberta/Manitoba/Ontario) | UK:15 | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (British Columbia) | Singapore:NC-16 | Netherlands:16 | Ireland:15A | Argentina:13 | South Africa:16LV | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

Long Beach, California, USA

Company:

Sony Pictures Classics

Trivia:

In the stadium fight scene, David Mamet handed out $100 bills to background in the stands if they answered trivia questions correctly in order to get them to look in the right direction and "appear" interested.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Mike is on Chet's set during the knife demonstration, the knife fighters shirt first appears to be clean. When the camera shot changes it becomes sweaty in the front and back, and when the camera changes again it appears to be clean.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Mike Terry: Tie him up.
[to class]
Mike Terry: The hands are not the issue. The fight is the issue. The battle is the issue. Who imposes the terms of the battle will impose the terms of the peace. Think he has a handicap? No. The other guy has a handicap if he cannot control himself. You control yourself, you control him.
[to student]
Mike Terry: Take him to court.

Movie Connections:

References The Karate Kid (1984)

I'd love to dump on this movie for the pain it put me through

I've never rented a DVD that I had to take several attempts to see before. This hero's struggle was so painful to me personally that I had to take several runs at it. I'm a little surprised I made it through. Chiwetel Ejiofor as the main character, Mike Terry, is so perfect for the role it begs the question, Was this guy really just acting? The whole point of this movie, an homage to the purity of a certain sort of warrior spirit, is so unexpectedly plausible that I was taken aback. I thought David Mamet who had been involved in "Spartan", "Heist", "Ronin", and "Wag the Dog" to name a few other movies, was more predictably conventional and commercial.

This movie probably won't make a lot of money but it's a truly beautiful exploration of the potential for nobility in modern life. I kinda doubt whether they plan a sequel as the point has been made and it would take a truly extraordinary script to follow this little tour de force, but if there is one, I wouldn't miss it for the world.