Review: Fighter

This gal needs to get herself in some action movies...

At its essence, Fighter is a Kung-Fu, Girlfight retread that succeeds upon that film's strengths while learning from its mistakes just the same. That said, the cross-cultural, kick-ass experience which Fighter provides is still fresh enough to carve out its own niche and not only in feminist cinema, but in martial arts as well.

Writer-director Natasha Arthy brings real-life martial artist Semra Turan into the role of Aicha, a high-schooler from Denmark with an itch for Kung-Fu fighting and a disapproving Muslim background. Throw in real-life martial arts choreographer Xian Gao (Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon) in the role of an old-school Kung-Fu Master, and you've got Danish, Turkish, and Chinese ideas coming together in a wondrous, cross-cultural cataclysm that is of course sporadically facilitated by English ("English, please."). This is probably Fighter's greatest strength, as the blending doesn't feel forced and everyone is treated fairly. Apart from this, unfortunately, we see an all-too-familiar formula begin to take place. There is, of course, the father-daughter struggle, as well as the clashing of traditional and modern ideas. There's a love story, a hero and a villain, the reluctance of the mentor to each, etc. etc.: simply put, there's nothing here we haven't seen before, but that's not to say it doesn't work, and that doesn't work well.

The fight scenes have the inevitable Matrix-y whooziness to them, but they still feel very grounded in reality. The martial arts team, including Turan and Gao, really put a professional show, and while it isn't exactly Jackie Chan, it does prove to be solid entertainment. There's a great little fight in the kitchen with varied food, pots, and pans flailing everywhere as two fighters representing two families coming together in marriage duke it out, emotional-visceral style. The inclusion of an interview with Bruce Lee feels a bit tacked-on, but even then, it does add an extra element to the film (probably because of Lee's larger-than-life persona alone). There's also a recurring dream sequence where Aicha fights some sort of mythical ninja—it was clunky and predictable, but a change of pace nonetheless.

In the end, Arthy and Turan may not be quite as talented as their respective Girlfight counterparts in Karyn Kusama and Michelle Rodriguez, but they surely prove their worth here. The supporting players are all great as well; Xian Gao, Denize Karabuda (the mother), and especially Cyron Bjørn Melville, in the role of Emil, all do their part. The film's similarities to Girlfight may be striking, but in an industry that copies itself indefinitely, the legacy that Fighter represents is still a very fresh and welcome one.


*** out of ****

~ Patrick Fryberger