The Sensei

I am a martial arts instructor in Boston, MA. I just watched this movie with a group of my adult students. I was very pleased with the film, it's ambition, and Ms. Innosanto's vision to make a martial arts movie that represented the best the martial arts have to offer. The film gracefully takes on some very tough subjects: racism, social phobias, bullying, the challenges of family dynamics, and more. Well written and beautifully shot, this is a great film for anyone looking for a martial-arts-themed movie that goes beyond its genre of "punching and kicking" to get at the "battles" of real life. I loved this movie, and strongly recommend it to anyone interested in martial arts, community activism, and social change. Remarkable effort -- I would strongly recommend this film be used as a tool for teaching respect and tolerance in martial arts clubs, religious organizations, social groups, and even schools!

Both my husband and I saw "The Sensei" in Seattle, WA on 10/24/08. We were touched by the emotion in the film and think the casting was excellent. We appreciated that there were parts of the story that were NOT shown and left to the viewers imagination - that doesn't happen very often anymore. We are bombarded with gore and detail - not in this film. The ending was beautifully done and could have even been a bit longer.We also enjoyed the art in the film - especially "Karen's" art. The only downside to this film was that there were several parts that were just too dark to be able to really see what was going on. Some of the outdoor night scenes were especially tough to decipher.

Congratulations for a job well done. We will watch for it on DVD.

I found this movie surprisingly good,Some unexpected twists, rich story line, good acting. This is not a martial art movie, this is a good movie set in a martial art background. Its difficult to decide which is better diana lee's acting or her martial arts both are top grade. Louis Mandylor is quite touching with his role. Generally good acting from everyone. The fight scenes are the most realistic i have seen in a very long time. None of the one person beating up 20 people that has become tiresome this days in martial art movies.It also shows the rich character and morale fiber which is what the martial arts is about not just hammering people to a pulp like MMA tries to portray.

This was a great movie, it really depicted the way things were in the 80's. The story was a amazing it is so easy to get lost in the script. The ending really does bring the movie together. It movie gets better every minute, you spend the whole time wanting to know the characters and what is going to happen to them. It is an amazing movie, I can't wait until the movie is out on DVD so I can have my own copy that I can watch whenever I want. It is truly an amazing film, it is defiantly one of the bet movies that I have seen in a long time. I would love for this movie to be show in the theaters in a wide release or at least in a limited release.

this martial arts film is also a film about about prejudice,hypocrisy,intolerance and violence.those are some weighty issues.and the film doesn't shy away from them.in fact,it wades right into them head-on.there is one scenes that depicts someone being savagely beaten.the worst of it isn't shown,but is is implied and you do hear it off camera.this is no fluff piece bu any stretch of the imagination.it's well done and doesn't sugar coat anything.but you get to see some touching moments as well.it would be wrong to compare this to The Karate Kid.they do both have similarities but this one has a much stronger message whereas in my opinion The karate Kid was more focused on the entertainment aspect.when you go into his film,expect to be jarred.for me,The Sensei is an 8/10