Scorpion

The film looked good in the trailers. It looked brutal and the fights looked realistic. I thought this was going to bring MMA into mainstream movies. I thought this was going to be the future of Mixed Martial Arts movies. What a let down, which was made worse by the fact that i watched it without subtitles (the film's in French, i think). This was billed as a Mixed Martial Arts movie, but it didn't have any proper fights. the fights did not necessarily have to be fancy, but they could've done some better choreography. Even Power Rangers had better fights than this. Martial Artists or MArtial Arts fans stay away from this movie.

My brother came home with this, because he knows what a big MMA fan i am, and the back of the cover says "Scorpion is the definitive mixed martial arts movie".

First off, the cover mentions nothing of the movie being french with subs, but anyway ...

I was hoping this was going to be a good movie, to strengthen the argument for MMA, helping it get even more exposure, how stupid was I ? The writers/directors were doing exactly the same as the gang leader/fight manager/whoever he was. They made this movie, hoping that the popularity MMA has at the moment, would make them rich.

Eye gouging, fish hooking, stomps to a downed opponent, the only part of this movie I would call MMA were the gloves !

Washed-up ex-fighter is approached by shady manager and convinced to enter the illegal / no-rules fighting circuit, but what he's really looking for is redemption. Though better made than the similar films Jean Claude Van Damme was making in the early 90's ("Lionheart", for example), "Scorpion" will probably not satisfy most martial arts fans. The fights are brutal but suffer from flashy over-editing which makes them hard to follow. And the severely unpleasant subplot about a barwoman who is also forced to work as a prostitute for a violent criminal is both a downer and a distraction. The acting is convincing across the board, but there is only so much you can do with this story. (**)

The script can be a bit melodramatic at times but the acting is good and the fight scenes are good. If you like martial arts films and you are a fan of Clovis Cornilliac, Karole Rocher, Caroline Proust or Olivier Marchal then this film is worth watching.

Scorpion is one of those movies which you will watch for the sake of watching. I mean french action movies are rarley boring, and Scorpion ain't no different. Okay it sets the mood nicely however the acting may not be the greatest but it certainly is entertaining. Check it out if your a fan of mixed martial arts movies , however don't expect anything big or like the best mixed martial arts movie. The acting is cheesy , the script is crap but the story told is a good one and thats what keeps you watching , its like one of tough guy movies you just watch for the sake of watching.

SCORPION 6.7 OUT OF 10