Chiwetel Ejiofor gives a subtle and well crafted performance as Mike Terry, a Jiu-Jitsu instructor who avoids prize fighting and chooses instead to run a self-defense studio which adheres to the honorable samurai code. Terry and his wife Sondra (Alice Braga) are struggling to make ends meet and when an accident between one of Terry’s students, an off-duty police officer named Joe, and a depressed lawyer takes place, it sets up a series of events which will lead to Terry’s first entrance into the world of prize fighting. Once there, Terry learns of some corrupt practices and must choose between fighting for the money, which he desperately needs, or fighting for honor.
Although there are notable moments of honor in this film, including a powerful conclusion, the movie is sadly peppered with strong language and a graphic scene of suicide and we are unable to award our Dove “Family-Approved” Seal to the picture.
