Death Warrior (2009) User Reviews

Marginally better then other MMA films with the stamp of approval of the fighting leagues

[dbborroughs · 3/10 · 10 December 2009]

MMA champion is roped into fighting in some underground matches.

Marginally better than other similar MMA movies made by Hector Echavarria in conjunction with the fighting leagues and starring the fighters themselves. The film mostly suffers from really poor acting since not only are many of the fighters non-actors, they are surrounded by poor actors in the supporting roles. It doesn't help that the film has the plot of almost every other MMA movie (Note to the producers and Mr Echavarria, please come up with something else in place of this one plot) nor does the production seem to have had any money spent on it, with the film style less creative then even the coverage of the fights on TV. (do I need to mention that that the fights are silly and terribly staged? I mean Echavarria sometimes stands there and waits to be attacked)

For my money I'd stay away from any film that's endorsed or connected to the various league and go with something like Red Canvas which is an actual movie, with real performances and exciting fights.

Has little going for it

[TdSmth5 · 3/10 · 14 October 2018]

Things are looking good for seasoned MMA fighter Reinero after he gets a big endorsement. That is until some bad guy breaks into his house and inject the pretty wife with a neurotoxin which forces Reinero to do the evil boss's bidding in exchange for the antidote. This of course involves fighting other guys, some of his friends too, in fights to the death which are broadcast underground and which allow other to place bets.

The story is familiar of course. Except here it's poorly done. The main problem is that this whole thing is Echeverria's (producer and writer) vehicle for himself as lead actor, except that he can't act nor fight and has zero charisma. For a fight movie it looks like no one can actually fight hence the director struggles to film a fight scene. Clarke and Mancuso save the day with their acting. If the concept appeals to you then Arena (2011) is the movie to see. Had Echeverria been humble enough he would have hired someone competent to play the lead.

I'll give Death Warrior three stars for the nudity.

A Realist Perspective

[mister_dailey-612-924899 · 2/10 · 21 June 2010]

A brief, honest synopsis for those who do not like long reviews:

Guy who missed the MMA window but can throw a roundhouse writes, produces, and stars in film which provides the capacity to effortlessly defeat MMA stars and interact with quasi-attractive girls all while playing tough to an over-acting septuagenarian.

What makes the movie difficult to finish:

1. Acting - Keith Jardine wins the "best actor" award and he only has six mumbled lines.

2. Misplaced/Mistimed/Unnecessary T&A - Main character's wife is half-dead, vomiting violently due to a viral injection. Good time for a second fully-nude sex scene? Why not. And don't bother with the dudes-with-boobs extras. I swear the one chick has an Adam's apple.

3. GSP is locked in a cell...not sure why.

Echavarria pumped out another MMA movie in 2009 and proved he actually is a contender...with the straight-to-video action crowd. Watch out Steven Seagal!

Lame thats all I can say.

[pike145 · 1/10 · 9 June 2010]

Its painfully obvious that when it comes to movies that are produced by "wwf" and "tapout" productions your not getting what your money worth! Death Warrior is no exception... The movie is predictable and with very poor acting to add to the mix. Its almost as if you can see the fights are staged! The story is neither gripping or interesting its another illegal "Underground Fight" in all honesty this movie is really not worth reviewing its just so terrible to even talk about it I give it a one and I recommend you not waste your money or time on this excuse of a movie that could of been better! I have already seen one of Hector Echavarria's movies and it was just as bad as Death Warrior! In all honesty I'm beginning to wonder if I should even consider anymore of his future productions! Lets face it Poor acting, poor script, poor action, poor story, poor delivery.. etc. I'm sorry for picking on him but seriously They can do much better then this much better I hope to see a movie that isn't already been done with fantastic martial arts scenes that can be seen as awesome and not staged!

very poor acting

[ashish_panghal · 1/10 · 30 May 2010]

Hi all, well I usually don't comment on movies but this one is awful and I have to write something for sake of people those who are planning to see this movie.

You just can't watch the full movie because of so poor acting (even porn movie have better actors) and poor direction, dialog, just every thing was so hateful. The story starts with a freestyle wrestler thinking of retirement after one or two fights to bag good money. And thats where the bad man comes with his idea similar tournament movie (no detonators this time). And abducts some great fighter my foot. They have to fight or die and surely their families are also the victim of this whole thing.

Well I don't know about you all but I must say IMDb should provide some rating choices in minus too like -10 or something for this kind of movies so that whole world can know about this piece of sh*t creating some unpleasant smell.

Sorry for being so rough but this one deserves it.

"I will rip your heart apart"-Reinero

[tarbosh22000 · 8 August 2011]

Reinero, aka Ray (Echavarria) is a professional Punchfighter on the big-time Punchfighting circuit. His biggest rival is Wolf Jackson (Jackson). Fight promoters have been touting their upcoming battle, but Ray's wife Kira (Clarke) begs him not to do it. Ray, blithely unaware of any past clichés, says the classic line "just one more fight". Before the match can take place, gangster and self-described "businessman" Ivan Mikhailov (Mancuso) kidnaps Ray and injects Kira with a poison that will kill her in five days. Ivan forces Ray to Punchfight for his life against other meatheads while people bet on this activity over the internet on the website gladiatorchallenge.com. Will everybody love Ray? And can he extricate himself from this dire situation?

Echavarria is hilariously wooden, and he wears the same jacket with a yellow stripe for just about the whole movie. He does a lot of flying kicks. He's somewhat likable, but let's just say his fighting nickname of the "Rain Man" is disturbingly accurate. The rest of the cast is rounded out by monosyllabic meatheads with zero acting ability. Except, of course, for Nick Mancuso, who puts in an awesome performance. His over the top, bug-eyed yelling must be seen. He screams and spits all his lines. His energy is welcome, and his performance, which he easily could have phoned in but for some reason chose not to, saves the movie.

As always, this modern-day Punchfighter is TRYING, but there's too much nu-metal and ADD editing. Unlike Beatdown (2010), you can almost see the fights here for five seconds at a time. How far the fighting genre has fallen. Funny fighter names include Rexx, El Croco, The Shaman, and Kang Lai, who is a "Ninja Master" and, of course, "The Best". The following is a list of quotes from the movie:

"Death matches have been going on since the Coliseum. You were born for it." "He has yet to taste defeat." "No man has lived until you stare death in the face." "When you're in a fight, you always get hit." "I'm going to SLAY YOU!" "I will rip your heart apart" ...and the all-time, laugh-out-loud classic:

"Someone's trying to infiltrate the MMA!"

THE MMA? Anyway, on top of all that, the film tries to capitalize on the Saw-like "torture porn" trend. For example, the fighters have to fight while in chains. Call it: "Chain-Fighting". But, inadvertently (?) quoting Wayne Newton from Best of The Best 2 (1990), Ivan yells, "The only rule is...THERE ARE NO RULES!!!!"

Despite its shot-on-video look, Death Warrior provides a few laughs and Nick Mancuso at his best.

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