Knockout (2011)

Too much of everything

Instant Favorite.

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

Imagine living in a world where every movie plot is fashioned from the Karate Kid. In this movie it is boxing instead of karate. I must give kudos to the casting director for being able to find people whose acting ability were on par with Mr. Austin. At times the acting and script was so hokey I found myself laughing at the serious moments of the movie, such as when boy Matthew first tells his mom and step-dad he wants to box. The lines and acting were so bad, I thought this might be a comedy. This might be a good movie for tweens, but beyond that it's a bust. One bright spot was Emma Grabassky, the young girl who played Matthew's gf. I can't figure out how she slipped through the bad actors only screen.What I really want to know is how does one get funding for this type of tripe? You go the studio and say, "I have written a screen play stolen from the Karate Kid. I have substituted the word "boxing" for "karate." I got Steve Austin to play Mr. Miyagi and he promises never to smile and to only speak in truisms. We are going to find worse actors than Austin, so as not to upstage him. We won't have a decent soundtrack either and the director is blind." I think a movie about trying to sell this film would have been more entertaining.

Knockout is a charming effective film. The story is a shaggy dog cliché. A young boy the new kid in town. He idolizes his grandfather a former boxer. He runs into the school bully. friendless he has no one to turn to except the school janitor played wonderfully by Steve Austin. The boy tries out for the school boxing team. Only to find the bully is the school Champion. the boy loses faith in himself. The janitor Dan Barnes takes pity on him.Dan a former contender for the heavyweight Championship.. Barnes lived life in the fast lane and burnt himself out. Barnes got hurt and ended his career. Barnes takes the boy under his wing and trains him. The bully continues to torture him until a boxing match is set up to determine who will get the final spot on the boxing team. The film is filled with teen angst, young love and issues with the parents. Knockout finds it's voice in the relationship between the boy and Barnes. and later on There is that magical first love with another outsider. A young girl named Ruby. The film could be called sweet and tender. It could also be called a slice of life.Showing us how outsiders are made. How people who feel differently are sometimes punished for being different. The films driving message is simple. You must have faith in yourself. No one can fight your battles but you. You must choose a course of action and do it. Pretty effective message for a pretty effective movie that tries to disguise itself as a Boxing tale. Very Well done.

Well this is a story told lots of times , the underdog that comes out alright in the end .And it feels a bit like the karate kid goes boxing . And I'm not really a Steve Austin fan .But strangely enough it works . The story while not original kept me , and that's saying a lot . The box-kid is an interesting character so is Steven Austin as coach . Austin is not a great actor , but he makes up to it with attitude and stature . And in my opinion keeping it real was smart .Not much else to say , I enjoyed it , but nothing to write home about . While I think it appeals mostly to teens , its not a bad movie for any age , and I for one like the "you can do it if u set your mind to it " message .

I'm almost certain that the people who are down rating this film initially thought they would be watching a Stone Cold Steve Austin action extravaganza instead of a family movie. Even though I'm not a professional movie critic, or a filmmaker, I do consider myself a movie buff who delves into every possible genre. And as far as this certain type of genre goes, it's pretty good. "Knockout" never tries to jump over itself. It clearly knows what it wants to be. In fact, at one point, it gives a shout out to the original "Karate Kid." Many plot lines feel familiar, but it's all handled with as much care as possible. The movie is successful at flowing down the middle without being overly heartwarming, or not heartwarming enough. Steve Austin isn't applying for greatness, but he feels completely right for this role. Despite his opposing figure, you can see the soft spot within his eyes. As for the main kid, he eases into the role by the end of the film. The kid who played Hector tackles the bully role with aplomb. The girl playing Ruby is also very charming. All in all, my two young kids enjoyed this and so did I. As far as these types of films go, this one is above most.