After being attacked on the street, a young man enlists at a local dojo, led by a charismatic and mysterious sensei, in an effort to learn how to defend himself from future threats.After being attacked on the street, a young man enlists at a local dojo, led by a charismatic and mysterious sensei, in an effort to learn how to defend himself from future threats.After being attacked on the street, a young man enlists at a local dojo, led by a charismatic and mysterious sensei, in an effort to learn how to defend himself from future threats.
- Awards
- 5 nominations
C.J. Rush
- Other Steve
- (as CJ Rush)
Cameron Murphy
- New White Belt
- (as Patrick Cameron Murphy)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaWriter and director Riley Stearns trains and teaches Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
- GoofsThis post was political and added nothing to the movie experience. Not sure how it made it past review.
- Crazy creditsAt the beginning of the end credits, the show's "title logo" is shown in a "black metal" font, mirroring the front cover of the CD Casey buys (albeit in yellow).
- SoundtracksCan You Hear Me Now?
Performed by Donald McMichael
Written by Donald McMichael
Featured review
Underwhelming
I like Eisenberg and Nivola, so I was primed to enjoy this, but what a letdown. It starts off with a decent droll tenor, even if the humor is pretty lame and the story very simplistic (fraidity-cat nerd gets mugged, then gets empowered in karate class). But rather than evolving into something more interesting, the film just gets mean-spirited without truly going "dark," with improbable developments and insufficient depth to pull them off. Characters who turn out to be sorta evil remain cartoonish, so there's no punch to the revelations.
This is neither a farce or a "black comedy," just some tepid compromise between, and it wastes some very good actors. You've seen Eisenberg playing a dweeb before--he's certainly good at it, but this movie doesn't bring out anything new--while Nivola, who's normally terrific, is neither very funny or sufficiently threatening in a role that calls for both. Likewise Imogen Poots and David Zellner get one-note roles. I don't know what this movie was trying for, but it didn't work for me. I would have rated it lower (because I really did wind up disliking it), but in technical and acting terms the filmmaking was competent enough to give it a medium grade.
This is neither a farce or a "black comedy," just some tepid compromise between, and it wastes some very good actors. You've seen Eisenberg playing a dweeb before--he's certainly good at it, but this movie doesn't bring out anything new--while Nivola, who's normally terrific, is neither very funny or sufficiently threatening in a role that calls for both. Likewise Imogen Poots and David Zellner get one-note roles. I don't know what this movie was trying for, but it didn't work for me. I would have rated it lower (because I really did wind up disliking it), but in technical and acting terms the filmmaking was competent enough to give it a medium grade.
helpful•190141
- ofumalow
- Jul 8, 2019
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Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official site
- Languages
- Also known as
- Nghệ Thuật Tự Vệ
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $2,410,914
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $114,374
- Jul 14, 2019
- Gross worldwide
- $2,414,269
- Runtime1 hour 44 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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