I saw the MA15+ Rated
'BEAST' earlier this week, and this sports action drama film is Co-Produced and Directed by Tyler Atkins in only his second feature film making effort following
'Bosch & Rockit' (aka
'Ocean Boy'). The film was released Stateside earlier in April, has so far grossed US$1.3M and has garnered generally favourable critical reviews.
The film opens up in the changing rooms of a One Championship MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) Arena where trainer Sammy (Russell Crowe, who gets a Co-Writing credit on this film too) is putting his Champion fighter Patton 'The General' James (Daniel MacPherson) through his final paces before a bout. Sammy's mantra which he makes Patton repeat back to him several times is 'Why do we breath, so we can think, and why do we think, so we can win'. We then see the pair exit the change room, and out into a packed arena, with bright lights, the crowd roaring, and Patton greeting his legions of adoring fans with his arms raised. We then fast forward ten years and Patton is working as a commercial fisherman having long turned his back on his MMA career. But working for a small boat with fellow fisherman Neal (George Burgess) and the gruff and unforgiving skipper (Nathan Phillips) who calls Patton a 'Jonah' because he has put a curse on his lowly catch, and eventually fires Patton for speaking out against the small operator and his dodgy boat and sub standard equipment.
Patton is very happily married to Luciana (Kelly Gale) and they have a young daughter Maddie (Sol Nc Carrico), with Luciana announcing that she is expecting a second child. One day while working out in his makeshift gym in his garage, he has his TV turned on to a MMA bout featuring his younger brother Malon James (Mojean Aria) against reigning World Champion Xavier Grau (Bren Foster). Needless to say Malon is no match for Grau who pummels him quickly and delivers a crushing blow to the head after the bell has rung marking the end of the round. This puts Malon in hospital in a coma, and potentially putting him out of the cage for a least five months, assuming he recovers. While Patton, Luciana and Nadine (Malon's partner [Saphira Moran]) are waiting in hospital Grau's manager Gabriel (Luke Hemsworth) shows up and offers Patton a bout with Grau, and a guaranteed purse of US$100K. Gabriel also tells Patton that Malon is in debt to Barry (Matt Nable), a lone shark and strip joint owner to the tune of AU$50K. Patton declines, but Gabriel thrusts his business card into Maddie's hand, and says for daddy to call him if he changes his mind.
Sometime later, and Patton meets with Gabriel in a bar overlooking Sydney harbour. Patton says he'll agree to the fight for US$150K, with 50% upfront and six months in which to get fighting fit. Gabriel reluctantly agrees but says the fight is fixed for seven weeks time, and pulls out a contract for him to sign on the spot. Patton, goes to Sammy's MMA Fight gym in an attempt to rekindle his past relationship with Sammy, but Sammy tells him in no uncertain terms to fuck off.
Sammy's daughter Rose (Amy Shark) a former MMA fighter herself but now retired due to a career ending knee injury, is now a trainer. Patton explains to Rose that he's agreed to the fight for cash, and she agrees to train him, much to Sammy's chagrin. Rose begins putting Patton through a rigorous training regime, but it is clear that he has a long way to go to stand any hope of defeating Grau.
Meanwhile, in Bangkok, Grau and Gabriel are sat in front of a panel of One Championship officials who ban Grau from fighting for six months and strip him of his World Championship title for that final blow to Malon's head after the end of round bell had rung. We also learn that Patton KO'd Grau in six seconds in an earlier bout ten years ago - a record that still stands to this day, and which was Grau's only defeat.
And so with Grau unable to fight Patton, the latter pockets the US$150K and pays off Malon's debts to Barry in full with interest. Malon meanwhile has recovered albeit has been ordered not to fight for a least five months to allow his head and brain injuries to heal. Malon visits Patton at Sammy gym, and the pair almost come to blows as the estranged brothers argue over their absence from each others lives for the past five or so years.
A short time later Patton and Malon meet unexpectedly while out training. Patton invites Malon to Maddie's upcoming birthday party, saying how much she would love to have him there. Malon agrees to attend. The birthday party arrives the following Monday afternoon and Malon rocks up and hands Maddie a gift wrapped box, and then makes his quick apologies and promptly leaves, saying he needs to be somewhere and not to worry. Patton chases after him, but Malon speeds off in his truck, wheels spinning. Later, Maddie opens the gift box from Malon, revealing several wads of cash all bundled up in AU$10K packages. This prompts Patton and Neal to track down Malon to a warehouse later that night and an unofficial and unsanctioned bout between Malon and Grau, which sold to a select audience for AU$10K a ticket. The bout is fought on an open floor with onlookers gathered around. Once again it is clear that Malon is outmatched by his far superior opponent, who pummels, punches and kicks the still recovering fighter. Patton and Neal arrive at the unfolding scene just as Malon is delivered a high kick to the head which sends him careening backwards where his head comes into contact with a large iron box. He stumbles backwards with a large gash to his head, coughing up blood and collapses on the floor, dead. Patton rushes forward and cradles his dead brother in his arms.
After Malon's funeral, Patton climbs inside a bottle drinking heavily, not sleeping too well, having given up hope of ever returning to the ring, and growing increasingly distant from Luciana. Until the day comes when Luciana recognises Patton's internal turmoil, and tells him that she can no longer stand seeing him like this. Go off and do what you need to do, she tells him, and come back to me when your done. This is the news that Patton needed to hear. Patton goes back to Sammy and they share a conversation about why they drifted apart. Patton was involved in a bar brawl that got him landed in prison for just over two years. Every other day while inside he said, he had to fight against some new inmate who wanted to push their weight around. He got sick of fighting and when released he turned his back on it. Sammy said that he waited at the gym, hanging by the phone for Patton to call upon his release saying to pick up from where they left off, but that call never came, and Patton made no attempt to reconnect. Sammy also said that his daughter Rose wasn't allowed in his gym until she turned thirteen and he always knew that MMA fighting was in her blood, and now she is one the best trainers he knows. He gives his blessing to Patton to utilise Rose's training techniques to beat Grau.
And so a rigorous training montage follows with Patton being coached by Rose and with Neal as his sparring partner, the bout with Grau is finally fixed for the One Championship Arena in Bangkok, Thailand. There is no guaranteed payout, there is no backing out, its a winner takes all bout for the One Champions World title and a US$3M payday. The night of the bout arrives and both contenders are in top fighting form. For Grau this grudge match is so that he can redeem himself in front of his fans for his humiliating defeat against Patton all those years ago and finally get his revenge. For Patton its all about proving to himself that he still has what it takes and to be able to provide for his family without counting every dollar, and perhaps to a certain extent to avenge the death of his brother at the hands of his opponent.
With Rose and Neal in Patton's corner, the first round goes to Grau, who punches and kicks with a ferocity that Patton seems almost defenceless against. The second round is more evenly matched, with Patton landing many kicks, punches, head locks and leg locks to Grau's surprise. The third round gets messy with Grau gouging at Patton's eye with his thumb, which is seen on TV the world over. The Referee gives Patton one minute to recover, but he can barely see out of his injured eye. As a result, Patton suffers many punches to the head, chest and stomach until Grau flinches clutching his hand which appears to be broken. This gives Patton the opportunity to breath, think and ultimately win with a series of crushing blows to Grau as he recoils against the cage fencing, and is KO'd after four minutes and seventeen seconds of Round 3. Back home in Sydney, Luciana, Sammy and Barry are cheering from the top of their voices as Patton is hailed Champion.
With
'Beast' Director Tyler Atkins is hardly reinventing the MMA/Boxing drama film genre, but he does nonetheless deliver us a respectable offering that ticks all the boxes you have come to expect from a movie of this ilk. The fight scenes are very well choreographed and put you right in the centre of the action as every punch and kick lands, and every choke hold and leg lock is administered. Sure the film follows a tried and tested formula that is nearly as old as cinema itself, but it does possess enough emotional heft to rise above the also rans sports drama films that seem to come along all too frequently. The two big name leads in MacPherson and Crowe do what they do best, but the remaining supporting cast are largely generic and one dimensional, save perhaps for Amy Shark in her first big screen role. There are also a number of plot holes and examples of poetic license for the sake of dramatic effect that let the movie down to a degree, but if seeing two pugilists go head to head and toe to toe in the octagon floats your boat, then this film is for you.
'Beast' merits three claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a possible five claps.
-Steve, at Odeon Online-
