NEVER BACK DOWN - Blu-ray review

Never give up! Never back down! - Jean Roqua

Just recently I caught a documentary on the National Geographic Channel titled "Fight Science," which delved into the science aspect behind Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). The hour-long program studied the various techniques and fighting styles of MMA, but also focused heavily on expert researchers gathering and analyzing data from a variety of full contact athletes in a state-of-the-art gym-laboratory hybrid. Everything from the force of blows, stamina, and discipline were measured and compared across the board. The astonishing results were that in every single test, the mixed martial artist came out on top--besting boxers, kung fu masters, jujitsu artists, and more. Now I wouldn't call myself a fan of UFC, but after witnessing all of the complexities involved in the sport with my own eyes, I see it in a new light. "Fight Science" proved without question that the phenomenal jack-of-all-trades combatants are truly the greatest physical specimens in the world.

"Never Back Down" is what some have labeled as a retelling of "The Karate Kid," only over twenty years later, the theme is Mixed Martial Arts. Of course, the fights have been spruced up with more streetwise action and Hollywood flavor for the film, but the basic core structure of MMA still exists. Oh, and Daniel-san goes off the Ritalin.

The story kicks off with a high school football brawl after Jake Tyler (Sean Faris) tackles and clobbers another student for dissing his deceased father. Jake has built up quite the reputation for being hot-tempered, and this last straw causes him to be permanently ejected from the team. It's not really a big deal to him, though, as his younger brother, Charlie, has won tennis scholarships which is relocating the Tyler family from Iowa to Orlando, Florida.

It was supposed to be a fresh start, but at his new school, Jake doesn't make a good first impression. Most of the other teenagers have much deeper pockets, and the snobs tease him about his rather plain attire. But through the modern technology of the Internet and video streaming, clips of his football brawl begins to surface on the iPhones of his fellow classmates and the news spreads like wildfire. Rising in popularity, Jake catches the attention of a few students, including the gorgeous but somewhat shallow blonde named Baja (Amber Heard).

One evening, Baja lures Jake to a high-octane party where brutal fights are the norm, and this is where we meet the reigning jerk in the movie, Ryan McCarthy (Cam Gigandet). Ryan has also seen the video footage and challenges Jake to a one-on-one match in front of the whole crowd. Jake respectfully declines at first, but eventually accepts the offer after Ryan once again pushes the dead father button. Unfortunately for Jake, he learns the hard way that he's outclassed, outmatched, and ends up getting the beating of his life.

Battered and bruised, Jake becomes closer with another student named Max (Evan Peters), who takes Jake to the 365 Combat Club where he works out to meet his instructor, Jean Roqua (Djimon Hounsou). Roqua sees strong potential in Jake and admires his determination, but also senses that something isn't quite right, so he informs Jake that he'll take him aboard with the only stipulation being that he doesn't fight outside the studio. Jake agrees, and begins training for his eventual climatic rematch with Ryan.

There's no clever slave work of waxing cars, painting fences, or sanding the floors that suddenly transforms a scrawny weakling into a lean mean fighting-machine. Jake was already in pretty good shape to start, his only real problem was that all of his fight know-how was tied to one general area. But through training with Roqua, he's able to pick up a few more tricks and breathing techniques that help mold him into a much more versatile fighter.

On one hand the script is a little predictable, although on the other hand these types of films aren't exactly designed to have twists and turns around every corner. Come to think of it, the only sport film I remember having a shocking upset was the original "Rocky" movie where Rocky Balboa actually loses to Apollo Creed. So, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that Jake is probably going to break Roqua's golden rule, make it up somehow, and then continue training to turn the tables on the local prick. Would we really want it any other way?

Even so, writer Chris Hauty did manage to slip in one or two surprises that I wasn't expecting. I also have to give him at least some credit for crafting the story to focus on Jake's personal growth and overcoming demons from his past, rather than strictly being about the fights. From that point of view, I'm able to forgive the predictability and the multitude of clichés, especially since his only other writing credit was for "Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco."

The movie could have been easily forgettable and might be for some people, but for me, the fight sequences and most of the actors' performances is what kept it afloat. Faris was great as the heart of the film, plus he wasn't incredibly whiny like Ralph Macchio. Gigandet made an excellent cocky and sadistic villain the viewers' love to hate, and Hounsou delivers dedication similar to what we've seen from him in "Gladiator" and "Blood Diamond." All three also went through intensive training for months to get in prime shape and make the fight scenes as close to reality as possible. I was a little disappointed with how things unfolded with Amber Heard, though, who seemed to be just a shell of beauty with no real substance.

Video:
"Never Back Down" is presented in widescreen with its original theatrical aspect ratio of 2.40:1. I noticed other sites have this actually listed as 2.35:1, so I'm just going with what's on the case. The coloring sometimes has a yellowish tinge resembling "The Fast and the Furious" and if I had to guess, that was the look director Jeff Wadlow was trying to replicate here. Black levels were pretty sharp and I didn't notice any artifacts, although I didn't quite get that three-dimensional feel that sometimes comes through on Blu-rays. Still, it was a solid picture.

Audio:
Audiophiles should be happy with the DTS-HD Master Audio track, especially when the hard-driving music kicks in with a pulse-pounding bass. Like the video, it didn't have me grinning from ear to ear as some releases do, but overall it still was better than most. Optional English and Spanish subtitles round out the audio features.

Extras:
I wasn't expecting such a decent amount of bonus material for a film that was panned by many critics. First we have an Audio Commentary by Director Jeff Wadlow, Actor Sean Faris, and Writer Chris Hauty. It contains the usual production stuff, but they also share a lot of insider details about the fights. For instance, Faris mentions that his triangle choke during The Beatdown tournament was the best one he ever locked on and nearly caused his opponent (who also happened to be the choreographer) to pass out.

Blow By Blow: Breaking down the Fights is an interactive feature where Director Jeff Wadlow, Fight Choreographer Damon Caro, and Director of Photography Lucas Ettlin break down the action sequences frame-by-frame. The feature can be activated when a fist icon appears during the movie or they can be visited on the menu: "Gridiron Tyler," "Backyard Brawl," "The Main Event," "Roqua's Day One," "Half Speed," "Road Rage," "Mega Training Montage," "The Beat Down," and "Battle on the Blacktop."

Another interactive feature is the Alternate Angle Fight Mode where viewers can switch through the original cut, alternate cut #1, alternate cut #2, or a side-by-side comparison of all three views. Similar to Blow By Blow, this feature is identified by a punching bag icon during the film or can be selected individually: "The Main Event," "Road Rage," "Checking In," "The Slam," "Kick to the Ribs," "Ryan Fouls Out," and "Battle on the Blacktop."

Mix It Up: Bringing MMA to the Big Screen (10:14) is a short featurette on incorporating the mixed martial arts into the movie and touches on how the actors had to go through months of vigorous physical training to actually become believable fighters.

There's no shortage of Deleted Scenes, either. Each has an introduction by director Jeff Wadlow explaining the significance of the clip and its removal, and I've got to say that I wish more releases were done this way. The scenes can be viewed using the "Play All" option or individually: "That's Alright Mini-Jake" (0:48), "Salt in the Wound" (1:13), "Just Wanted to Talk to You" (0:43), "Extended Famous Montage" (1:05), "One of Those Awful Days" (2:18), "A Little Stalker-ish" (1:21), "Justus Von Liebig" (1:08), "Ask Him Again" (0:40), "Your Semi-Finalists" (1:07), "Extended McCarthy/Villa Fight" (1:15), and "They Don't Care Who Wins" (1:37).

Also included is a Promo Reel (1:36) which is a short promotional trailer created to pitch the idea for the movie, originally titled "Get Some," to studios so that the film could be put it into production.

I never saw the theatrical version of "Never Back Down," but Wadlow has a short Intro (0:22) before the film begins explaining that the Blu-ray version contains the extended beat down edition of the film featuring more intensity to the fights.

The Final Cut:
Sure, "Never Back Down" is a bit cheesy at times and the background for the story isn't anything we haven't really seen before, but even so I can't really say that I disliked the film. Maybe my expectations were low from hearing all of negative reviews or maybe I'm just easily amused. Who knows? All I know is that while it could have been better, I still wouldn't mind seeing it again and that makes it a slightly above average movie for my tastes.