NEVER BACK DOWN — ** — Sean Faris, Amber Heard, Djimon Hounsou; rated PG-13 (violence, profanity, slurs, brief gore, vulgarity, brief sex)
"Never Back Down" draws on a lot of older movies for inspiration — "Rocky," "The Karate Kid" and the popular John Hughes '80s-period movies, among others.
So there's a temptation to simply write this mixed-martial arts fighting drama off as "Rocky Junior," "The Breakfast Fight Club," "The Ultimate Fighting Kid" or even "Fightloose," if you will.
But surprisingly, the movie is not terrible. In fact, it's watchable — if you can stand the sight of people pummeling each other. It is a little bit violent for most audiences, though there might not be enough action for Ultimate Fighting Championship fans.
Sean Faris stars as Jake Tyler, a hot-tempered teen brawler. Jake's mother, Margot (Leslie Hope), has just moved him and his younger brother, Charlie (Wyatt Smith), from the Midwest to Florida.
It's supposed to be a fresh start for all three of them, but Jake is having a hard time fitting into his new surroundings. However, fellow student Max Cooperman (Evan Peters) wants to be his new best friend, and Baja Miller (Amber Heard) wants ... well, who knows what she wants from Jake.
As it turns out, her presence draws him to a party where he suffers a beat down at the hands and feet of her jealous boyfriend, Ryan McCarthy (Cam Gigandet).
Jake desperately wants revenge, so he begins mixed-martial arts training with Jean Roqua (Djimon Hounsou), though he has made Jake promise not to fight outside the gym.
Director Jeff Wadlow (2005's "Cry Wolf") stages some credible fight scenes. And this is one of the few instances where slow-motion camera work enhances such sequences.
Also, the cast is physically convincing. Faris is fairly likable, despite the pretty dopey scripting and the way in which the character is written.
Gigandet is more one-note as the villain of the piece. And Hounsou ("Blood Diamond") deserves more screen time than he gets.
"Never Back Down" is rated PG-13 for strong scenes of violent action (brawling, beatings, vehicular mayhem and some violence against women), scattered profanity and suggestive language, derogatory slurs, brief gore, scenes of teen drinking, and some brief sex play (as well as a brief lesbian hot-tub scene). Running time: 110 minutes.
E-mail: jeff@desnews.com