After two misfires with NEVER SURRENDER and DEATH WARRIOR, could the third time be the charm for martial artist turned filmmaker Hector Echavarria? Sadly, the answer is no as the problems that plagued the other two films do the same here.
Echavarria plays Ringo Duran, a down on his luck fighter who has gone past his prime and fights for as little as $500 while owing a big debt to loan shark Sergio (Al Sapienza). To make ends meet, Ringo works as a bartender at a local strip club. At the local gym where he trains, he always gets hassled by the younger Alonso (Keith Jardine).
However, an opportunity for Ringo to turn his downward spiral back upwards is imminent. A professional fight circuit offers $100,000 to the winner of an upcoming tournament providing that not only will he make it to the finals but defeat the current world champion, Christopher "The Pressure" Holland (Rashad Evans). Ringo begins to train for the tournament and is determined to prove everyone wrong by winning the tournament.
As the saying goes, one cannot teach a dog new tricks. With two misfires in 2008's NEVER SURRENDER and 2009's DEATH WARRIOR, one would think Hector Echavarria would have learned his lesson by now. Don't get this reviewer wrong. Echavarria is a great martial artist and does well with working with other choreographers. However, he really needs to work on editing and camera angles when it comes to his brand of fight choreography. Here, he goes solo in choreographing all the fight sequences himself rather than get help from the real MMA fighters who appear and they suffer from the problems that plagued the last two films he starred in. There are far too many quick cuts and extreme close-ups. An attempt to use long shot slow motion at times would work had it been complemented better.
As mentioned, real-life MMA fighters make up the tournament fighters. Rashad "Sugar" Evans plays the current champion, who will go to great lengths to keep his title. Keith Jardine plays the hot-headed Alonso, who constantly berates Ringo because of his age. Forrest Griffin and Nate Marquardt play tournament fighters as well. While Evans' character is the champion, the true villain comes in the form of loan shark Sergio, played by veteran soap opera star Al Sapienza. Sergio is seen as a true scumbag who will do anything for money.
Another flaw comes in the script, by Echavarria, Brad Bode, and director Warren P. Sonoda. Once again, the gratuitious nudity comes into play and at the wrong time. There are scenes at the strip club, which is totally understandable, but it seems like scenes involving slow motion erotic dancing is totally unnecessary. On the plus side, the near soft-core eroticism that plagued NEVER SURRENDER and had lessened with DEATH WARRIOR, begins to diminish with only one real love scene in the film, but one can't help but not being able to stand the slow motion stripping.
UNRIVALED could have marked the charm for Hector Echavarria. However, it falls short like the previous MMA-themed films he has worked on. While he has more MMA-themed films lined up, he should attempt to do something different and work with a more talented fight choreographer and learn from whoever he works with. It is best to rent the film and see for yourself, but you may end up disappointed in the end.
Echavarria plays Ringo Duran, a down on his luck fighter who has gone past his prime and fights for as little as $500 while owing a big debt to loan shark Sergio (Al Sapienza). To make ends meet, Ringo works as a bartender at a local strip club. At the local gym where he trains, he always gets hassled by the younger Alonso (Keith Jardine).
However, an opportunity for Ringo to turn his downward spiral back upwards is imminent. A professional fight circuit offers $100,000 to the winner of an upcoming tournament providing that not only will he make it to the finals but defeat the current world champion, Christopher "The Pressure" Holland (Rashad Evans). Ringo begins to train for the tournament and is determined to prove everyone wrong by winning the tournament.
As the saying goes, one cannot teach a dog new tricks. With two misfires in 2008's NEVER SURRENDER and 2009's DEATH WARRIOR, one would think Hector Echavarria would have learned his lesson by now. Don't get this reviewer wrong. Echavarria is a great martial artist and does well with working with other choreographers. However, he really needs to work on editing and camera angles when it comes to his brand of fight choreography. Here, he goes solo in choreographing all the fight sequences himself rather than get help from the real MMA fighters who appear and they suffer from the problems that plagued the last two films he starred in. There are far too many quick cuts and extreme close-ups. An attempt to use long shot slow motion at times would work had it been complemented better.
As mentioned, real-life MMA fighters make up the tournament fighters. Rashad "Sugar" Evans plays the current champion, who will go to great lengths to keep his title. Keith Jardine plays the hot-headed Alonso, who constantly berates Ringo because of his age. Forrest Griffin and Nate Marquardt play tournament fighters as well. While Evans' character is the champion, the true villain comes in the form of loan shark Sergio, played by veteran soap opera star Al Sapienza. Sergio is seen as a true scumbag who will do anything for money.
Another flaw comes in the script, by Echavarria, Brad Bode, and director Warren P. Sonoda. Once again, the gratuitious nudity comes into play and at the wrong time. There are scenes at the strip club, which is totally understandable, but it seems like scenes involving slow motion erotic dancing is totally unnecessary. On the plus side, the near soft-core eroticism that plagued NEVER SURRENDER and had lessened with DEATH WARRIOR, begins to diminish with only one real love scene in the film, but one can't help but not being able to stand the slow motion stripping.
UNRIVALED could have marked the charm for Hector Echavarria. However, it falls short like the previous MMA-themed films he has worked on. While he has more MMA-themed films lined up, he should attempt to do something different and work with a more talented fight choreographer and learn from whoever he works with. It is best to rent the film and see for yourself, but you may end up disappointed in the end.
Rating: D
Rated R for violence and nudity
Run Time: 103 minutes
Released by Grindstone Entertainment and Tapout
Directed by Warren P. Sonoda. Produced by Sean Buckley. Written by Hector Echavarria, Warren P. Sonoda, and Brad Bode. Action choreographed by Hector Echavarria. Starring Hector Echavarria, Rashad James, Keith Jardine, Nate Marquardt, Forrest Griffin, Al Sapienza.
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