Die Fighting

Among the several martial arts performance groups making names for themselves in the movie business, the Z Team is definitely among those worth watching. Though one of its members – Laurent Buson – has already been generously highlighted in MERANTAU, their first feature length team production here is a different kind of project and pretty unique as far as fight flicks go. Though this genre-bending adventure takes a few creative and technical chances that don't pay off and will limit this one's appeal among viewers, it ought to appeal just fine among people who value martial excellence and are ready for a slightly different kind of street brawler.

The story: A team of martial arts performers trying to make it big in Hollywood is forced by a sadistic, omniscient filmmaker to fights for the lives of their loved ones in a series of life-and-death brawls.

The film is a fairly dark action-thriller. Imagine THE CONDEMNED shot by a director of the SAW series, with an emphasis on martial arts. Nevertheless, the decision of the actors to play themselves (led by director Fabien Garcia) makes this feel a little like a vanity project, and the semi-realistic approach to the scenario makes the very flashy karate look out-of-place at first. However, once the movie starts finding its pace, it begins to feel more natural, especially as mystery transcends any character shortcomings and the quality of the brawls becomes stellar. The decision to film this as a pseudo-documentary is odd but handled about as maturely as possible: at best, the camera-work is standard enough that you forget what kind of a movie this is supposed to be, and even at its worst, you never get the erratic, debilitating camera-work of "Blair Witch" knockoffs.

The fight scenes are more than decent to begin with but ultimately develop into fight-of-the-year contenders. The ten full-length fights are evenly split between one-on-one and one-against-many exchanges, and in both cases, the performers demonstrate the necessary ingenuity to stand out against the competition. The first fights lack a little power – giving the impression of a bunch of guys just throwing spin kicks until someone drops – and director Garcia's love of Dutch angles is not entirely conducive to filming dynamic brawls, but the quality of the matches rises quickly and dramatically. A scene wherein Garcia battles a karate dojo is particularly cool, the showdown between Didier Buson and Xin Sarith Wuku is a showstopper, and the lengthy slugfest between Garcia and Laurent Buson is a worthy finale. If anything, I wish the fights could have been even more creative: in one scene, the filmmaker demands that Garcia fight a violent gang using only drunken boxing techniques, and a few more stipulations of this sort could have made for even more interesting exchanges.

The eventual twist at the end of the movie may or may not satisfy viewers, but personally, I thought it was pretty cool. Additionally, the amplitude of performers trying to act their way through thick French accents may be off-putting to some viewers, but anyone who can sit through a Van Damme movie should be fine. Altogether, this amounts to a movie that could have been a lot better but isn't actually in too shabby of shape to begin with. The Z Team seems capable of matching its ambition as deftly as, say, Eric Jacobus and his Stunt People, and I expect good things from them in the future. In the meantime, I recommend DIE FIGHTING as at least a rental.

The trailer looked promising and the movie definitely delivered.

The plot is really good for a martial arms film. It was suspenseful and kept me guessing until the end. I became emotionally invested in what was going which is always a sign of good film making. Without spoiling anything, the ending wasn't what I wanted. Overall the movie is really well made. Occasionally near the beginning, a little of the dialogs is difficult to hear but this is a minor problem.

The acting is decent. The lead actors are martial artists first and foremost so its unreasonable to expect A list actor quality performances. The actors conveyed the emotions needed without seeming cheesy, awkward or weird. For a martial arts film the acting was pretty good.

The martial arts in the movie are very impressive. There are numerous fight scenes and they are all well choreographed and executed. Slow mo is sparsely used, there's no wires and no CGI to replace the genuine action.

In summary, very good fight scenes and highly recommended for action fans. Definitely looking forward to what Z Team Films produces in the future.

I wouldn't get near giving this a 10 .. but i also wouldn't call it the worst Martial Arts movie that i have ever seen (and I've seen a bunch). Since the main listed actor did the directing etc too, I'm guessing this was a project of passion, but the dude sure has a mean kick.

Low budget obviously, and a pretty weak plot and average acting, but still worth a watch for the fight Choreography. I didn't think that i would make it thru the whole movie but i did .

Filmed with multiple cameras, most simulating some kind of CCTV cameras which is an interesting choice.. seems to work with the plot.

So yeah .. worth at least one watch, but don't look for many Oscars in its future.

EDIT: When i wrote this i wasn't quite finished with the movie.. now that i am .. the ending actually caught me off guard.. it was very well done.

The acting is terrible, the choreography and fight scenes are abysmal, and the plot, if you can even call it that does not hold attention at all. This films just screams low budget, with poorly trained actors and mediocre (at best) martial artists. It almost reminds me of Arena as it has many similarities, but worse, much much worse if you can believe that. Ultimately it is not worth your time, not to buy or rent, you couldn't give it away without offending the other person. Stay away at all costs, trust me. You're best watching an actual good fighting film such as; Undisputed 2, blood sport, IP man and the like.

For all the direct to DVD action movies that usually hit the bargain bin their are a few hidden gems among them. Die Fighting would definitely rank up their as one of the better titles that are a part of the genre. Fabien Garcia is definitely a name to look out for in the future for the genre. The movie provides on a wall-to-wall succession of impressively shot and choreographed fight sequences that are sure to provide thrills. Of course the acting may not be the greatest, but the main actors do perform their own stunts and combat sequences which surely earn them respect for action fans. The story may remind you of another solid martial arts action movie BKO: Bangkok Knockout, but they do add a twist in their to make it more unique and fact that the story and characters pretty much mirror the real life of the actors makes it more interesting to watch. Overall, a must watch for fans of movies like Undisputed II and III, Ninja II and other Direct to DVD/video action titles. If your one of those guys who enjoys these types of films, than sit back and enjoy the action and don't think too much.

6/10