I hit the couch to eat lunch and turned on Sundance channel and came in at the first third of the movie . . . didn't leave the couch. Good movie. As in the other movie reviews there is no real new story line here, but what caught me was the lighting. Shots were she is with her family are shot in darker lighting and when Semra is in the environment her heart wants to be in (ex. Kung Fu studio) the lighting is much brighter. Simple little things like this and the floating camera (?) make it a good MOVIE and add power to the story and the acting. I don't know if it was intentional, but Semra's "less is more" acting really helped sell the internal struggle she was going through to deal with the chains of Turkish societal and familial expectations. Now I can't wait to see it again from start to finish - and with my 12 year old daughter who just started serious training in sports. Should be required watching for girls in Jr. High.
19 Reviews
Just another "Girlfight" clone
refdan14 June 2008
Warning: Spoilers
The performances in this film were good as were the cinematography and fight choreography. Where this film fell down is that it is not original.
The film "Girlfight" has almost the same plot: a young girl who has a nasty temper and gets into fights constantly, discovers boxing, much to the displeasure of her father. She learns to box and eventually beats her boyfriend, who is also a boxer.
In this film, the girl is of Turkish descent living in Copenhagen, Denmark. She is a Muslim from a conservative family. She learns some Kung Fu in her high school club, but she is too aggressive to stay and instead finds a true Kung Fu school with a real sifu (Master). She disobeys her father and almost ruins her brother's planned marriage while training and the school. She meets a blond non-Muslim boy at the school and is assigned as his training partner. You can guess what happens next, can't you? I'll leave the rest of the plot to you to discover to avoid spoilers.
My real beef is that it's not innovative or original just the same story in a different place. I feel that there should have been a more interesting development to avoid the same old trite clichés.
The film "Girlfight" has almost the same plot: a young girl who has a nasty temper and gets into fights constantly, discovers boxing, much to the displeasure of her father. She learns to box and eventually beats her boyfriend, who is also a boxer.
In this film, the girl is of Turkish descent living in Copenhagen, Denmark. She is a Muslim from a conservative family. She learns some Kung Fu in her high school club, but she is too aggressive to stay and instead finds a true Kung Fu school with a real sifu (Master). She disobeys her father and almost ruins her brother's planned marriage while training and the school. She meets a blond non-Muslim boy at the school and is assigned as his training partner. You can guess what happens next, can't you? I'll leave the rest of the plot to you to discover to avoid spoilers.
My real beef is that it's not innovative or original just the same story in a different place. I feel that there should have been a more interesting development to avoid the same old trite clichés.
Good movie but not really a Kung Fu Film
nicholls_les1 August 2016
Not a bad movie at all and it tells an interesting story of Aicha, a young Turkish girl who wants to learn kung fu. Her Turkish parents, like many immigrants want her to get good grades and get into medical school. Defying her family, Aicha starts secretly training at a professional, co-ed kung fu club. A boy, Emil, helps Aicha train for the club championship and they fall in love. Aicha is forced to decide who she is and what she wants.
This is more a movie about culture and it shows how immigrants to the west with Muslim values never really get to fit in as they cling to traditional ways of doing things. The coldness and at time cruelty of her father is probably not very unusual in similar family's. The fact that Aicha wants to do Kung fu is sort of irrelevant as she could have chosen anything that her family didn't approve of.
As for the movie itself Semra Turan is pretty good as the main character, although there is to much of her running in panic that gets a bit annoying. Cyron Melville as Emyl, the boy who falls for her is a decent actor, pretty good acrobat but clearly not a martial artist. I've never liked movies that overly feature wire work but this is what the director wanted.
So if you like good Kung fu movies this isn't really for you, but as a movie about clashes of cultures it is pretty good.
This is more a movie about culture and it shows how immigrants to the west with Muslim values never really get to fit in as they cling to traditional ways of doing things. The coldness and at time cruelty of her father is probably not very unusual in similar family's. The fact that Aicha wants to do Kung fu is sort of irrelevant as she could have chosen anything that her family didn't approve of.
As for the movie itself Semra Turan is pretty good as the main character, although there is to much of her running in panic that gets a bit annoying. Cyron Melville as Emyl, the boy who falls for her is a decent actor, pretty good acrobat but clearly not a martial artist. I've never liked movies that overly feature wire work but this is what the director wanted.
So if you like good Kung fu movies this isn't really for you, but as a movie about clashes of cultures it is pretty good.
Martial arts and Turkish immigrants in Denmark
dgrolin1 January 2008
A beautiful and touching movie that deserves a wider viewing than it is likely to get. Semra Turan plays Aicha, a second generation Turkish immigrant, who tries to break the mold. Neither entirely at home with her moderately conservative Muslim family, nor with her liberal Danish friends, Aicha's martial arts experience becomes a fight to find herself and have the strength to allow herself to be who she wants to be in spite of both family and friends.
Director Natasha Arthy manages to balance introspection and narrative so that it has depth without becoming ponderous philosophical discourse, and drawing on Xian Gao's choreography skills pays off in spectacular fight sequences. In the end, however, it is Semra Turan's stunning debut performance that gives this movie spirit. Raw charisma and requisite martial arts skills are complimented by heart to make her personal drama believable.
Well worth your while.
Director Natasha Arthy manages to balance introspection and narrative so that it has depth without becoming ponderous philosophical discourse, and drawing on Xian Gao's choreography skills pays off in spectacular fight sequences. In the end, however, it is Semra Turan's stunning debut performance that gives this movie spirit. Raw charisma and requisite martial arts skills are complimented by heart to make her personal drama believable.
Well worth your while.
Kung Fu Disaster
nekrosoma15 January 2009
Warning: Spoilers
Despite positive reviews and screenings at the international festivals, this movie is not for everyone.
The story is very similar to other movies, in which a teenage girl from the family of immigrants needs to overcome many common personal problems of her age, and also to struggle against the pressure of ethnic traditions in her family. She does that by choosing some kind of sport, and with the help of a local boy, that for some reason falls in love with her, she confronts her problems and wins.
In Girlfight it's boxing, in Bend it like Beckham it's soccer, and now it's Kung Fu.
But Fighter is much inferior product than these two, it was simply embarrassing to watch it. Semra Turan, the "actress" that playing the role of a teenage girl, maybe can do a lot of things, but one thing she can't do is to act. Her presence on the screen is anemic and clumsy, the dramatic situations, in which she tries to show some emotions, are dreadful, her body and facial language are of amateur actress, badly instructed by the director. The rest of the cast is a little better, but they just cannot save this cliché movie with stereotypical characters and shallow plot. Besides a few relatively good moments this movie has nothing new or interesting to offer.
Even the kung fu fighting is not a reason to watch this, it's just so boring. The slow motion was really unnecessary, the choreography was basic and lacked the inspiration, and most of the kung fu scenes are just training or standing in all kind of kung fu positions, not actually fighting. Not to mention how ridiculous it looks when a small and skinny girl fights big and muscular boys, and knocks them off their feet.
The only reason this movie has been noticed at all is because it's European. It's very easy to publicize this movie - A first martial arts film from Denmark, but don't be fooled, it's not. It's just a drama about stupid teenage girl and her problems, which are, by the way, not really convincing.
Bad movie with embarrassing lines, acting and story.
The story is very similar to other movies, in which a teenage girl from the family of immigrants needs to overcome many common personal problems of her age, and also to struggle against the pressure of ethnic traditions in her family. She does that by choosing some kind of sport, and with the help of a local boy, that for some reason falls in love with her, she confronts her problems and wins.
In Girlfight it's boxing, in Bend it like Beckham it's soccer, and now it's Kung Fu.
But Fighter is much inferior product than these two, it was simply embarrassing to watch it. Semra Turan, the "actress" that playing the role of a teenage girl, maybe can do a lot of things, but one thing she can't do is to act. Her presence on the screen is anemic and clumsy, the dramatic situations, in which she tries to show some emotions, are dreadful, her body and facial language are of amateur actress, badly instructed by the director. The rest of the cast is a little better, but they just cannot save this cliché movie with stereotypical characters and shallow plot. Besides a few relatively good moments this movie has nothing new or interesting to offer.
Even the kung fu fighting is not a reason to watch this, it's just so boring. The slow motion was really unnecessary, the choreography was basic and lacked the inspiration, and most of the kung fu scenes are just training or standing in all kind of kung fu positions, not actually fighting. Not to mention how ridiculous it looks when a small and skinny girl fights big and muscular boys, and knocks them off their feet.
The only reason this movie has been noticed at all is because it's European. It's very easy to publicize this movie - A first martial arts film from Denmark, but don't be fooled, it's not. It's just a drama about stupid teenage girl and her problems, which are, by the way, not really convincing.
Bad movie with embarrassing lines, acting and story.
Gripping drama
Gecq13 February 2008
Warning: Spoilers
When I took my seat in the cinema I was in a cool mood and didn't plan on changing it. But this movie is a dramatic powerhouse. I was all in sweat and needed a shower afterward. So what have we? Theoretically a coming of age story of a teenage Turkish girl living in Copenhagen, Denmark. It came to my mind soon that the plot seemed pretty much completely borrowed from "Bend it like Beckham", where we had an Indian girl playing football and spoiling the wedding of her sister. Here we have it transferred to a Turkish girl spoiling her brother's wedding by doing Kung Fu. And we have a love story and a competition of course, too. After I accepted this, this really turned out to be a gripping, emotional drama and it shows off some beautiful Kung Fu (I'm not an expert, though). The lead actress Semra Turan is not only Denmark's female champion but she also delivers an excellent performance, so that it appears to be safe to assume that we have quite some autobiographic impressions here taking into account that this is her first movie and that she has no education as an actress. Rest of the supporting cast is okay, camera good, Kung Fu intense. Sidenotes: - The male Turkish audience showed respect so that they must have done something right. - The audience burst into cheers when our heroine finally fought back and attacked the boys who were gravely beating up her brother in revenge. - Xian Gao, a Chinese cinematic Kung Fu instructor/actor (Hidden Tiger, Crouching Dragon) played the lead role's master
If you get the chance to see this in cinema do it, you'll probably have a good and intense experience and I don't know if this works on small screen as well
If you get the chance to see this in cinema do it, you'll probably have a good and intense experience and I don't know if this works on small screen as well
Extremely inaccurate
charleenovember15 October 2016
The level of realism for a female practising martial arts is very poor. Awful.
The lead character is a featherweight at best. In real combat sports, even pro fighters have poor chance against someone 5-10kg heavier. In the movie she fights man clearly far heavier than her and their interaction is unrealistic at best.
The teacher coaches in Chinese Martial arts - the routine practised by the students are modern Wushu style routines but they are dressed in Japanese 'Gi' and wearing coloured belts. There are no belt ranking in traditional Chinese Martial arts. There are samurai swords in the background and the training mat Japanese style.
For a movie that centred around the theme of Martial Arts, it appears that the makers of the movie made little effort to research on their theme. It is rather appalling
The lead character is a featherweight at best. In real combat sports, even pro fighters have poor chance against someone 5-10kg heavier. In the movie she fights man clearly far heavier than her and their interaction is unrealistic at best.
The teacher coaches in Chinese Martial arts - the routine practised by the students are modern Wushu style routines but they are dressed in Japanese 'Gi' and wearing coloured belts. There are no belt ranking in traditional Chinese Martial arts. There are samurai swords in the background and the training mat Japanese style.
For a movie that centred around the theme of Martial Arts, it appears that the makers of the movie made little effort to research on their theme. It is rather appalling
Racing speed and deep dignity
ingo_schwarze11 January 2009
When you are in a gloomy or depressed mood, go watch this film. It shows a lot of beauty and joy in a very simple everyday setting, and it is very encouraging, in particular from a feminist and a humanist perspective.
When you know both the Turkish language and either the Danish or the German language, go watch the film in any case. Half of the dialog is Danish in the original, synchronized to German in the translated version, the other half Turkish, subtitled in Danish or German, respectively. When i watched it in Mannheim, Germany, the reaction of the Turkish-speaking audience proved that there must be a lot of humor in the Turkish dialog, which, deplorably, mostly escaped me, being only imperfectly rendered in the subtitles. Still, the film is interesting even if you lack knowledge of the Turkish.
Esthetically, the movie is playing a lot on the theme of speed and slowness. On first sight, there is lots of corporeal movement fast as lightning, making it a quick, an agitated film. In particular, even though this is a Kung Fu movie, watch out for the running scenes, beautifully expressing a wealth of emotions. But there are quite a few very slow, emotionally intense scenes, too. And above all, the characters develop at a much slower pace than you would expect in a drama about the coming of age; still, there is some movement in the characters to: Closely watch the villain Omar, whose part and acting i liked very much.
The contrast of speed and stillness nicely contributes to the depiction of human rage and dignity - shown at once, in the same characters, at the same time.
When you know both the Turkish language and either the Danish or the German language, go watch the film in any case. Half of the dialog is Danish in the original, synchronized to German in the translated version, the other half Turkish, subtitled in Danish or German, respectively. When i watched it in Mannheim, Germany, the reaction of the Turkish-speaking audience proved that there must be a lot of humor in the Turkish dialog, which, deplorably, mostly escaped me, being only imperfectly rendered in the subtitles. Still, the film is interesting even if you lack knowledge of the Turkish.
Esthetically, the movie is playing a lot on the theme of speed and slowness. On first sight, there is lots of corporeal movement fast as lightning, making it a quick, an agitated film. In particular, even though this is a Kung Fu movie, watch out for the running scenes, beautifully expressing a wealth of emotions. But there are quite a few very slow, emotionally intense scenes, too. And above all, the characters develop at a much slower pace than you would expect in a drama about the coming of age; still, there is some movement in the characters to: Closely watch the villain Omar, whose part and acting i liked very much.
The contrast of speed and stillness nicely contributes to the depiction of human rage and dignity - shown at once, in the same characters, at the same time.
Not Bend it like Beckham
michbar24686 September 2010
Warning: Spoilers
This is NOT like Bend It Like Beckham. In this movie Aicha's father never accepts her Kung Fu, never cares about her happiness. She ends up concealing it from him. He finally accepts her but never shows any interest in her happiness. In Beckham the father finally fully and enthusiastically accepts his daughter's football and her happiness. In Fighter everything is blamed on Aicha even though she is loyal and the troubles at her brother's wedding are not her fault. She gets the blame anyway. She gets blamed for her brother's being mugged by his true love's brother and friends. In Beckham the wedding is not ruined or disrupted by football. The male footballers in contrast welcome Jesminder's playing. They are impressed by her getting on a team. In Fighter Omar is angry and offended by her Kung Fu training. He tries to undermine her. I could go on, but the differences make this comparison problematic at best.
The attraction between Aicha and Emil is kept within the confines of Aicha's conservative upbringing. She likes Emil a lot and at the end makes it very clear to him she wishes to have a relationship with him but on her terms. She never rejects her family's values even as she continues Kung Fu. She is happy to finish runner up in the competition and gaining Omar's respect.
Does anyone know who sings the song "Shadow" during the end credits?
The attraction between Aicha and Emil is kept within the confines of Aicha's conservative upbringing. She likes Emil a lot and at the end makes it very clear to him she wishes to have a relationship with him but on her terms. She never rejects her family's values even as she continues Kung Fu. She is happy to finish runner up in the competition and gaining Omar's respect.
Does anyone know who sings the song "Shadow" during the end credits?
Surprisingly beautiful movie
ridmx19 December 2009
When I went to watch this movie my expectations were really low, but I was pleasantly surprised.
I thought I was going to watch a boring teen-flick, BUT in fact the plot is interesting and well executed, the acting was somewhat convincing - especially from Melville who really shows his talent in this movie, and the fight scenes were - for a low budget movie - very well done .
I think this movie deserves a broader audience than it has received. It is a movie, which can be seen by the whole family - maybe not the smallest of kids, since it contains some rather rough scenes. A movie about love, and the problems that can occur, when you go against your family traditions.
Yes, the movie is very much like "Bend it like Beckham", but I actually think this movie pulls it off better.
I thought I was going to watch a boring teen-flick, BUT in fact the plot is interesting and well executed, the acting was somewhat convincing - especially from Melville who really shows his talent in this movie, and the fight scenes were - for a low budget movie - very well done .
I think this movie deserves a broader audience than it has received. It is a movie, which can be seen by the whole family - maybe not the smallest of kids, since it contains some rather rough scenes. A movie about love, and the problems that can occur, when you go against your family traditions.
Yes, the movie is very much like "Bend it like Beckham", but I actually think this movie pulls it off better.
Excellent Film
psymedium12 May 2011
I watched this movie with no prior knowledge of it, and was immediately sucked into the film. It is a film that is beautiful to look at and has the ability to evoke emotions within the viewer causing them to live the story with the main character. The cinematography was absolutely wonderful, and served to make the film somehow realistic and surreal at the same time. The soundtrack was perfect and each song seemed to compliment the moments on screen, but was almost a character in and of itself. The acting was believable and realistic and the star of the movie "Aicha" really makes the audience connect with her and feel her plight, and the choreography of the fight scenes was wonderful. I was so pleasantly surprised by this movie and it is one that I will absolutely have to recommend to friends.
remarkable passionate entertaining, great direction
A_Different_Drummer30 April 2016
Makes the Karate Kid look like Romper Room.
Not a martial art movie as such, more of a coming of age film, but the reason it caught attention is that the fighting scenes are actually better than you would find in films that actually ARE fight films! Great direction, great acting. Great use of background and motion. The central character has many scenes where she is running seemingly without direction or purpose, a metaphor for the twists and turns in her life.
Does a great job of showing western viewers the "other" side of the coin, what is like to come from a culture that limits expression rather than encourages it.
Very engaging. Highly recommended.
Not a martial art movie as such, more of a coming of age film, but the reason it caught attention is that the fighting scenes are actually better than you would find in films that actually ARE fight films! Great direction, great acting. Great use of background and motion. The central character has many scenes where she is running seemingly without direction or purpose, a metaphor for the twists and turns in her life.
Does a great job of showing western viewers the "other" side of the coin, what is like to come from a culture that limits expression rather than encourages it.
Very engaging. Highly recommended.
kung fu movie set in the real world
sapphire_dragon-123 February 2013
In regards to comparisons with Bend It Like Beckham I would say this film is like it's older mature cousin. Bend It Like Beckham was cute, fun with a traditional Hollywood fairytale story. This film strips all the Hollywood fairytale and plonks the story in the mundane real world. The romance is careful and considered with real world reactions, the family reconciliation doesn't leave you with a happy happy family feeling, the Yoda equivalent offers opportunities but no answers and seems helpless through most of the film and the main character's kung fu obsession doesn't end with all conquering victory.
What you do get instead is a character tug of war where one side wants her to be a traditional Turkish girl and the other wants her to embrace modern Western idealism. For me this is what makes the film clever. It's not simply about a girl trying to overcome her limitations but a girl fighting to not be boxed in by any ones social norms whether it be Eastern or Western. The Western lifestyle is not held up as some moral superior as it is in many other films of this nature. This film is simply about a girl trying to forge her own path without having to embrace everyone else's values.
As a final note I noticed a lot of people thinking she is being kicked out of her martial arts class at the beginning of the film due to aggression. While it is true she is aggressive she's not being kicked out. The teacher notices her frustration at having no challenging opponents because she has out skilled everyone in the class the teacher feels be better of in a more advanced school. If you ask me this is good teaching and I wish more teachers were this observant.
What you do get instead is a character tug of war where one side wants her to be a traditional Turkish girl and the other wants her to embrace modern Western idealism. For me this is what makes the film clever. It's not simply about a girl trying to overcome her limitations but a girl fighting to not be boxed in by any ones social norms whether it be Eastern or Western. The Western lifestyle is not held up as some moral superior as it is in many other films of this nature. This film is simply about a girl trying to forge her own path without having to embrace everyone else's values.
As a final note I noticed a lot of people thinking she is being kicked out of her martial arts class at the beginning of the film due to aggression. While it is true she is aggressive she's not being kicked out. The teacher notices her frustration at having no challenging opponents because she has out skilled everyone in the class the teacher feels be better of in a more advanced school. If you ask me this is good teaching and I wish more teachers were this observant.
well crafted independent gem
disdressed1223 May 2010
i found this little independent gem to be well crafted.it's about a Turkish girl living in Copenhagen,who wants to do her own thing,but her family being very conservative Muslims have their owns plans for her.the title obviously gives much of the plot away.but there's more to the movie than that.there's the cultural divide,and the gender bias as well.the fighting scenes are very well choreographed and are very elegant,almost balletic.there are no fancy camera tricks here.i was also impressed with the lead actress Semra Turan.i also like the ending.it wasn't your typical ending.then again,this isn't your typical movie.i'd say it's well worth a watch.for me,Fighter is a 9/10
Well-crafted social commentary with wins all around
suite_5001 November 2009
Cinematography--Compared to 'The Wrestler,' a degree of verite and cinematic skill that disarms the viewer, and then hypnotizes as well.
Acting--The dialogue is minimal, but the pauses and silence poignant.
Story--The conflict in a 'balkanized' Denmark is volatile, as we saw recently jihad murders in the Netherlands and riots in France. While I harbor no love for Islam, the departure from the West from Christian values holds no cause for celebration.
The director of this film managed to mirror the two societies in a way that belabored neither, emphasizing the development of Aicha as an individual who became a champion, not so much in the ring, but to all those around her. Even her worst . . . I will stop here to avoid the spoiler.
Acting--The dialogue is minimal, but the pauses and silence poignant.
Story--The conflict in a 'balkanized' Denmark is volatile, as we saw recently jihad murders in the Netherlands and riots in France. While I harbor no love for Islam, the departure from the West from Christian values holds no cause for celebration.
The director of this film managed to mirror the two societies in a way that belabored neither, emphasizing the development of Aicha as an individual who became a champion, not so much in the ring, but to all those around her. Even her worst . . . I will stop here to avoid the spoiler.
Glad i finally saw it
destroyerwod12 September 2010
I am a passionate about karate/kung fu/kickboxing movies. My cousin use to be like ten years ago, when he was younger. We have 7 years difference, and i became crazy about this style around 1 year ago... and i gave back the passion to my cousin. When this was released here in Quebec, i talked about it to my cousin, to my surprise he didn't wait to be with me to rent it... like we usually rent these movie together. And when he saw it, he totally dislike it... said to me there was not much fights and the story didn't save it... Well it took me almost 8 months to finally rent it, a night i really didn't know what to pick... and here we are... Glad i did, cause i totally enjoyed it... Sure there is indeed not that much fight and this have nothing to do with grudge match bloodsport style or undisputed style... Its all about the story, about a little girl who want to do what she want and should be allow to do so like every normal north American can do, but sadly she is born in a country and a culture that is way too much old school like its still the 1800s.... I may shock people here but i could never and will never understand the Muslims culture.... I am just SO NOT in religion and old school way of life... So for me that movie was very important, it use a subject i really like(martial arts) to demonstrate a story about racial problems and discrimination... It may not show a lot of fights, and they are very basic too, but its so much more than that.... Im the kind of guy who can appreciate an old school 1995 kickboxing movie about a grudge match between the former and the new champion, but i can also appreciate a good story movie and this is what it is.
Turkish immigrants?!
cafeeinternet13 October 2008
The film notes describe the main role family, as Turkish immigrants which living in Denmark. However, it is so clear to understand that the fact is, the behavior and the culture point the family is absolute Kurdish. Similar social pressures and even cultural murders keep going on Turkey today on Kurdish ethnicity societies. What a worry...
It is widely accepted issue in Turkey today, the Kurdish immigrants living in European Countries today, which have moved from Turkey at 70's are culturally connected to the feudal moral laws system, by growing daughters and women under pressure, are giving harm to the Turkish International Image. Also, as same as widely accepted another issue is the Turkish or Kurdish immigrants on these countries are the reason negative aim about the Community Europe Nominee.
It is widely accepted issue in Turkey today, the Kurdish immigrants living in European Countries today, which have moved from Turkey at 70's are culturally connected to the feudal moral laws system, by growing daughters and women under pressure, are giving harm to the Turkish International Image. Also, as same as widely accepted another issue is the Turkish or Kurdish immigrants on these countries are the reason negative aim about the Community Europe Nominee.
Familiar martial arts tale with wire work and cool hairography.
ryansassy126 October 2012
Warning: Spoilers
"What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun."--Ecclesiastes 1:9
So the most important question is, was it done well? I think that's a general Yes.
And the second most important question is, does it pass the Bruce test? (i.e., both interesting ideas and good Kung Fu?) Again, Yes.
The plot is lifted straight from Karate Kid, mixed in a little with Dragon, and reinterpreted with a Turkish teenaged girl as the lead-- not a problem for me. Hey, if the story is good, the actors are competent, and the fight scenes well-choreographed, then that's all I need from my martial arts dramas. But just to be clear, this film is primarily a drama, not an action movie, nor a true martial arts movie: the focus is mainly on the lead, her personal problems, and her relationships with family; the Kung Fu serves almost as a poetic metaphor for her inner struggles.
Fighter's strengths: good cinematography, especially the fight scenes and the fantasy sequences; entertaining Kung Fu scenes; solid coming-of-age story; interesting exploration of culture clash between the Muslim immigrants and the native population of Sweden; sympathetic and charismatic lead actor Semra Turan in her debut role as Aicha--in fact, everybody in the cast was effective and believable.
Fighter's weaknesses: genre confusion -- did it want to be fantasy or realism? because some pretty unrealistic fighting powers suddenly materialize in the middle of even the non-fantasy fight sequences (come on, she did a back flip over her *standing* opponent?); some questionable writing lapses, such as how did she pay for her elite new Kung Fu club, and why did her stodgy father even let her train in martial arts for 3 years in the first place?; an over-reliance on ready-made martial arts movie clichés such as the tournament held at night in some obscure "underground" venue, dramatically lit by flaming tin barrels. My eyes rolled more than once during that one.
It's far from perfect -- nonetheless, Fighter was a heartfelt story which kept me engaged to the very end. Come to think of it, that reminds me of something else about this film that I liked very much; without giving away any details (I am determined that this review will need no spoiler alerts!), Fighter left a few side conflicts unresolved. The film didn't try to wrap up each and every story arc in a neat little bow. I believe this is intentional, because for a long time afterward the dangling story threads provoked me to consider the issues Fighter presented a little more deeply. Basically, this film respects the viewer enough to depart from the expected resolutions. I would have awarded it 7 stars, but that earned it one extra.
I think Bruce would have approved.
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun."--Ecclesiastes 1:9
So the most important question is, was it done well? I think that's a general Yes.
And the second most important question is, does it pass the Bruce test? (i.e., both interesting ideas and good Kung Fu?) Again, Yes.
The plot is lifted straight from Karate Kid, mixed in a little with Dragon, and reinterpreted with a Turkish teenaged girl as the lead-- not a problem for me. Hey, if the story is good, the actors are competent, and the fight scenes well-choreographed, then that's all I need from my martial arts dramas. But just to be clear, this film is primarily a drama, not an action movie, nor a true martial arts movie: the focus is mainly on the lead, her personal problems, and her relationships with family; the Kung Fu serves almost as a poetic metaphor for her inner struggles.
Fighter's strengths: good cinematography, especially the fight scenes and the fantasy sequences; entertaining Kung Fu scenes; solid coming-of-age story; interesting exploration of culture clash between the Muslim immigrants and the native population of Sweden; sympathetic and charismatic lead actor Semra Turan in her debut role as Aicha--in fact, everybody in the cast was effective and believable.
Fighter's weaknesses: genre confusion -- did it want to be fantasy or realism? because some pretty unrealistic fighting powers suddenly materialize in the middle of even the non-fantasy fight sequences (come on, she did a back flip over her *standing* opponent?); some questionable writing lapses, such as how did she pay for her elite new Kung Fu club, and why did her stodgy father even let her train in martial arts for 3 years in the first place?; an over-reliance on ready-made martial arts movie clichés such as the tournament held at night in some obscure "underground" venue, dramatically lit by flaming tin barrels. My eyes rolled more than once during that one.
It's far from perfect -- nonetheless, Fighter was a heartfelt story which kept me engaged to the very end. Come to think of it, that reminds me of something else about this film that I liked very much; without giving away any details (I am determined that this review will need no spoiler alerts!), Fighter left a few side conflicts unresolved. The film didn't try to wrap up each and every story arc in a neat little bow. I believe this is intentional, because for a long time afterward the dangling story threads provoked me to consider the issues Fighter presented a little more deeply. Basically, this film respects the viewer enough to depart from the expected resolutions. I would have awarded it 7 stars, but that earned it one extra.
I think Bruce would have approved.
Bend It Like Beckham on the Kung Fu mattress
imdb-22-rbarakX2 September 2008
Warning: Spoilers
It's a rather good movie, but too Americanised in it's predictability. Change the Kung Fu for football and the Turkish Family for a Pakistani one, and you get to watch Bend It Like Beckham (2002) almost scene for scene. A nice feature the serves as the backbone of the movie is the progression of fights with the mysterious ninja under the highway, beginning with miserable losses and slowly progressing until the last fight is a win against oneself, as the Kung Fu master stressed several times. On a different level, the Danish life is revealed quite different than the image it has by outsiders: the non indigenous immigrants that make a large proportion (actually, the majority) of the Danish citizenry, the graffiti in the Copenhagen suburbs, the taunting of the immigrant girl in the begging of the movie. All portray a different picture than one has in mind when one hears the word Denmark.
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