I believe David Mamet did a great job with this film. He managed to show a true art and soul of a real martial artist. This film is not about training, action and competition. It is more about a life of a man who has to challenge his own ideals and manage the turmoil that he is going through. This film is also refreshing due to its Brazilian touch. :-) Casting is great with only one exception - Rodrigo Santoro: I personally don't think he was the right choice for the role he played. Maybe he wasn't "dangerous" enough, don't know, but just didn't fit in right. Otherwise the script is well written and message delivered.
May not be the greatest movie, but definitely deserves to be watched.
Plot summary
Is there room for principle in Los Angeles? Mike Terry teaches jujitsu and barely makes ends meet. His Brazilian wife, whose family promotes fights, wants to see Mike in the ring making money, but to him competition is degrading. A woman sideswipes Mike's car and then, after an odd sequence of events, shoots out the studio's window. Later that evening, Mike rescues an action movie star in a fistfight at a bar. In return, the actor befriends Mike, gives him a gift, offers him work on his newest film, and introduces Mike's wife to his own - the women initiate business dealings. Then, things go sour all at once, Mike's debts mount, and going into the ring may be his only option.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
October 22, 2020 at 07:21 PM
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One of the best martial arts movies with not so much action in it. ;-)
I'd love to dump on this movie for the pain it put me through
I've never rented a DVD that I had to take several attempts to see before. This hero's struggle was so painful to me personally that I had to take several runs at it. I'm a little surprised I made it through. Chiwetel Ejiofor as the main character, Mike Terry, is so perfect for the role it begs the question, Was this guy really just acting? The whole point of this movie, an homage to the purity of a certain sort of warrior spirit, is so unexpectedly plausible that I was taken aback. I thought David Mamet who had been involved in "Spartan", "Heist", "Ronin", and "Wag the Dog" to name a few other movies, was more predictably conventional and commercial.
This movie probably won't make a lot of money but it's a truly beautiful exploration of the potential for nobility in modern life. I kinda doubt whether they plan a sequel as the point has been made and it would take a truly extraordinary script to follow this little tour de force, but if there is one, I wouldn't miss it for the world.
Deceptive David Mamet's Movie
The idealistic instructor of jujitsu Mike Terry (Chiwetel Ejiofor) refuses to compete in the ring for principle and is training the promising fighter and police officer Joe Collins (Max Martini). When the stressed lawyer Laura Black (Emily Mortimer) stumbles in his academy in a rainy night, she accidentally shots Joe's pistol breaking the front window. Mike and Joe do not report the incident, and Mike's wife Sondra (Alice Braga) tells him that they do not have money to repair the window. Mike seeks Sondra's brother in a bar to raise a loan, but he does not find his brother-in-law; he befriends the actor Chet Frank (Tim Allen) after rescuing him in a fight in the bar. Chet invites Terry and Sondra for a dinner party at his home and gives a golden watch as a gift. Mike gives the watch to Joe for pawning, but the watch is stolen and Joe gets in trouble in the police. Meanwhile Mike's idea of fight with handicap is stolen by a group of gamblers and Sondra raises a debt of US$ 30,000.00 for an unsuccessful business with Chet's wife. Without other option, Mike decides to fight in the ring to raise the necessary money to pay his debts.
"Redbelt" is a deceptive movie of the great writer and director David Mamet. The plot, about corruption in fight and a man with principles that is forced to go to the ring to pay for the debts of his wife is confused and apparently inconsistent. Mike does not fight because he finds it degrading; however, he prepares Joe for the competition. The participation of Chet Frank in the plot is also a complete mess. In the end, I saw a great cast wasted in a terrible screenplay. My vote is five.
Title (Brazil): "Cinturão Vermelho" ("Red Belt")