Kids in a Cage

If I didn't see it I wouldn't believe it. This documentary is very well put together showing not only the perspectives of the child athletes themselves, but also their parents, sport organizers, and grown up athletic counterparts. Irving shows both those in support of and those critical of various showcased aspects of the sport. He is not afraid to ask parents and organizers the tough questions I myself was wondering. The viewer is left to consider the information presented and determine their take on the subject, which I appreciate. Overall, I would recommend this documentary to anyone that appreciates, martial arts, sports, coming of age, or documentaries in general.

Kids in a cage is a raw look at kids aspiring to become future MMA fighters. It shows the tale of two kids training, working hard and cutting their teeth to hopefully someday compete against the best. Some moments can be tough to watch as no one wants to see kids trading hands. Martial arts and mixed martial arts does teach kids the principles of discipline, competition, focus, work ethic and perseverance. The world is not all sunshine and roses, life will not hand anything to you, these kids are learning what it will take to succeed going forward. It's not about the fighting, they are developing mental fortitude, inner strength and realizing early on that life is not going to hand you anything. Trophies, awards, and promotions should be EARNED and not just given just because. Many will say the parents are wrong for allowing their kids to compete but I would disagree. These parents can get a little obsessive and compulsive about things because their totally invested in their children's progress and future but sometimes that can come at a cost that the child must bear. As Carl Jung once said, "The greatest burden a child must bear is the unlived life of its parents." It's a worthwhile watch, it's a conversation provoking watch, it can make you a bit uncomfortable at times but at the end of the day, competition WILL make children stronger and better adults as they'll be able to handle life's challenges, rewards and setbacks. MMA is not for everyone. Some parents will associate it ignorantly as the same thing as raising fighting dogs. For them - I can only disagree and say - "that's your perspective" and I hope you enjoy your trophy labelled "entitled."

Who knew this strange youth culture existed-in 26 countries! After watching, one can appreciate MMA in a new light. One of the trainers poignantly observes, "violence (in this country) is always gonna be there. If these kids dont have tools to defend themselves, they're dead meat".

This film is indeed a treatise on martial arts in our modern age. The unorthodox sport of kids MMA celebrates classic values like discipline and self-reliance, but at times no doubt, seems to license a dangerous amount of aggression in our youth.

While the film follows 10 and 11-year-olds (and their fervent parents) to tournaments around the world, the most salient scenes are in the kids' domiciles, where we get a glimpse into their not-so-Rockwellian home lives.

Ultimately Irving paints a complex picture of the new nuclear family: what some call toxic masculinity; others American exceptionalism.

Kids in a cage is one of the best sports films I've seen in some time. It's a world I knew nothing about but it's captured vividly - and fairly - with a lot of care.

The two main characters are MMA fighting kids, one Latina and poor, the other white and wealthy. We think we're along for a ride to find out if they win Nationals, which we are but the director does a great job of showing the pitfalls tor the kids. Their parents are ultimately not just living through them but in some cases the kids become the parents. Of course this isn't unique to this particular youth sport but in MMA the consequences are steep.

By the time the film ended I couldn't stop thinking about where these kids would be in 5 or 10 years.

This is an amazing documentary that made me change the way I think about education in North America. Jayden, one of the main subjects, is extraordinary. I especially loved the fact that there is no preaching in the doc. The audience is left to make up their own minds about kids doing this and it's very thought provoking. I expected to think that kids doing this stuff would was simply awful. I think I'm still on that side of the fence, but perhaps not so much as before. Watching what these kids do, how hard they work and how tough they are, made me wonder - is all this discipline good for these kids? Will it serve them well later in life? Will there be negative long term effects? Are we as a society grossly underestimating that kids are capable of?