Champion

The film about arm wrestling that OVER THE TOP wished it had been (despite one of the characters being inspired by that film in the actual film). Don Lee plays a conflicted former professional arm wrestler who returns home to Korea for the first time in a lifetime since losing his standing in the professional arm wrestling world. His best friend, whom he would do anything for and is like a brother to him, convinces him that he has a chance to get back to the life he lost. Unfortunately, this forces him to get involved with gangsters and discover a family he never knew he had and the underworld they are trapped in. The film is really about a guy who's been physically and emotionally lost with only arm wrestling as his anchor until he discovers that there is more to his life than just being a champion. I absolutely loved this film and thought it gave Lee a great opportunity to show off a more emotional and nuanced performance than some of his other films. It is also, hands down, the best film about arm wrestling ever made.

It's no over the top. It needs a better campier soundtrack to do that.

Hard to really do an interesting sports movie in arm wrestling. I'm not putting down the sport just pointing out how hard from a cinematic point it is to do.

That's what it took more than 30' years after Stallone's try to attempted it again.

A hart warming story that's about Arm wrestling actually reminds me more of Jean Claude Van Damme's lionhart (which is about street fighting)

Mark is a Korean born American who goes back to his home country to try to regain his success as a Arm Wrestler. Along the way he retraces the family he lost.

Overall, a hart warming story you should watch as that, cause it's not the best sports movie. I don't feel the inspiration when they do the arm wrestling montage, it just was not working but the story on family is good.

A heart-warming very well acted and directed movie. The music supports and lifts the emotional flows and action of this film just right, the many comical moments are fortunately not over-acted but very well dosed, the dramatic moments are sincerely touching and although Mark has an introvert "come what may" life-style opposed to Jin-Ki's extravert hustling kind of life-style, the fact that both men's lives are not in balance binds them and secures their friendship.

The only nano bit that might have had more attention is when Soo-Jin learns via a telephone call that her very young children left the house and cruised the big city on their own to go to the arm wrestling match to return Mark's medal. Besides her lukewarm reaction to this, the medal was never discussed with her but she doesn't ask about it.

Ma Dong-seok, Kwon Yul, Yeri Han, director and writer Young-wan Kim and all the other cast and crew members did a great job in making this film for us as this film contributes to happiness in your life.

The only people who hate on this are jaded cynics and Americans with tunnel vision who compare it to "Over The Top", as if it were just a cheap knock-off of that. But it clearly isn't. It's more like a hommage that doesn't take itself too seriously. I would describe it as a wholesome, charming, light-hearted comedy with some emotional elements and a bunch of funny characters. If you want some light entertainment, you can definitely give it a watch.

Ma Dong-seok plays the arm wrestling hero, Mark. In real life he loves the Sylvester Stallone 1987 arm wrestling film, "Over The Top" so he's most likely very happy to have made his own. He happens to be one of the very top South Korean actors and once again he shows us here just why!

I quite enjoyed the 1987 film but I honestly feel that Ma Dong-seok out classed Stallone's film and, the entire film is superb. There are several story's going on within the film itself but neither takes precedent over another but, it does allow for the other actors in the film to shine outstandingly. There are 2 young children in this story and as per usual they outdo all the other actors; especially the young girl, Ye-Rin Ok. Asian children are 99% of the time brilliant little actors (forever stealing the limelight...lol), but this young lady is so very, very good and absolutely adorably cute. Put it this way. She is better than even Hannah Dakota Fanning was at the same age, 7, when she appeared in the2001 film, "I Am Sam".

Lovely film and well worth the watch; unless you're a one track mind for certain film types kind of person!