Rompiendo las reglas

Yes, it's just a revamped Karate Kid.

But with MMA, not just Karate, although I did have the occasional urge to shout "Cobra Kai!" when the bad guy came on screen.

Some cool action, basically just MMA (like in the UFC) that's been "hollywoodized" to be showy, "underground", and performed by supposed teenagers.

Djimon Hounsou is wasted on this film, but does fairly well at being the token real actor, giving it some tenuous legitimacy. On the upside, probably a more believable martial arts instructor than Pat Morita... physically, at least.

It's a great movie to just turn off your brain to, and watch lots of girls in bikinis and guys beating each other up. Pleasant, mindless T&A/Action.

This is one more film with quite good idea. Though, there are a lot similar films that we could bracket in one group with this one. Yet, it has something outstanding. It inspires me in a way. To strive for my life-goals, never back down, no matter how hard it may be, what sort of obstacles are ahead of you.. Maybe that's the real purpose of this film? To inspire one, to be confident and persistent. At least, I was affected in this way. I presume, that this movie is suitable for those, who have a very deep and grim times, who need some sort of wake up call to evoke positive feelings to what's life.. to make one be optimistic again...

. . . Never Back Down was still a really great movie that I had a lot of fun watching, and I was surprised with how much I actually ended up liking it. Of course this film is really very predictable and was basically just a rip-off version of Fight Club, The Karate Kid, and movies like that in general that was basically aimed at 16, 17, and 18 year old boys, but it was really enjoyable if you just judge it based on an actual movie and not what audience it's trying to pull in.

It did get pretty annoying and downright unbelievable at times, but I have to give this movie it's props, because the acting was done very professionally for a bunch of model-body teenage actors, and it also managed to keep me so interested and entertained through the entire film with semi adroit and crafty, motivating scenes and material matter. It gets a bit mediocre, as I have said, and some stuff just falls flat, but they handle everything they lack so well with other interesting and appealing scenes and substance, excluding the featherweight dialogue, haha.

Overall, I was so happy with the outcome of this movie, because while being cliché, and certainly not worthy of winning an Oscar or anything like that, it was really enjoyable, and I had a great time watching it. If you lower your expectations and free your mind, I bet you will too. I suggest you see it if you can appreciate it for what it is. If anything else, there is Cam Gigandet and Sean Faris shirtless.

It's interesting how this movie seems to be a watershed for mma. Mixed martial arts really are making the transition from underground, extreme bleeding-edge expressions of combat sport to a mainstream and accepted pastime, and that shows in the commentary about this film. Those who have a clue about mma aren't saying the same things as those who don't.

I have no patience for critics, anyway. They're worse than academics, really, and nothing they say can be trusted. You want to know if a movie sucked? Listen to the people.

This movie didn't suck. Okay, it wasn't Cool Hand Luke, but is that really what you were expecting when you saw the advance poster? It went to great lengths to make a Classical reference from the Iliad significant thematically, and how often does a "teensploitation" flick do that? It even employed a little finesse in some of the on-screen relationships, and in ways that seemed to hold a little verisimilitude, even. If the filmmakers had made Jake Tyler a gay youth fighting for free speech in the school newspapers, the critics would have loved it. All they saw was scary teen violence, so they…well, less than loved it.

Truth is that the movie isn't really glorifying violence; it's glorifying the quotidian, although it does seem to consider violence an acceptable means to an end. If you like mixed martial arts and you're not too delicate to watch stylized violence, rent it when it comes out. If you'd really rather watch 27 Dresses (you know who you are) tell your boyfriend it's chick flick time.

Has the advantage of being the first film of its kind (before the franchise was dragged to the minors). It is bright, it is pretty, it is well produced and it holds the attention. A relic of a bygone era.