^Muay Thai.
Although, it's also a masterclass in how to seriously injure people with elbow and knees.
Be warned though: it's extremely tough and painful to practise (at least the way the Thais do it), and involves a lot of conditioning.
edited 25th May '11 8:56:11 AM by zeroplusalpha
Play Again? Y/NProbably due to silly movies like The Karate Kid.
One of my few regrets about being born female is the inability to grow a handlebar mustache. -LandstanderAt least it got a large majority into the fighting arts. Who doesn't want to be ultiamte fighting machine who cna kick ass and take names?
"Fan, a Mega Man character."![]()
I should've elaborated; maybe Hollywood was actually the Trope Codifier for Shonen Upgrade, because seriously, just few months or weeks of training, and pow! You are free to go and beat the ever loving shit out of that bully you didn't bother report to the authority.
Of course dedication can makes any martial arts awesome, but that dedication isn't just around few weeks. How come there isn't any martial arts animemovie (ASFAIK) that teaches more practical martial arts, like Krav Maga, Silat, Sambo, or Muay Thai (well, there's Ong Bak but the MC was a Badass} to begin with.)? Are they less noble than karate or kung fu to Americans', especially Hollywoood's, eyes?
Let me rant a bit more. Anyone watched Never Back Down? I hate that movie. I just stopped watching the movie after ten minutes or so because it's plot was so stupid that it was insulting and not Michael Bay stupid (seriously, I sincerly like his movies perhaps because it's a stupid buffet of explosions).
edited 30th May '11 1:40:06 AM by dRoy
Continuously reading, studying, and (hopefully) growing.Well Krav Maga and Sambo aren't as old as karate of kung fu, and haven't had as much time to develop their historical heritage: the older the art, the more time is has to accumulate a rich tradition of legend, which lends itself more easily to fiction.
Also, Krav Maga and Sambo are predominantly designed for and by relatively modern militaries: I won't say that cultivation of spirituality is completely absent, but it's much less pronounced than a lot of older systems.
Play Again? Y/NHollywood writers aren't known for their respect for cultural idiosyncracies outside their own frame of reference. Forget martial arts, they can't even get computers right most of the time.
It's disappointing, but also understandable: writers have deadlines and production notes to adhere to, and will simply make stuff up that will pass in lieu of research, which may take more time than they have.
(For the record, I hated The Forbidden Kingdom, which was a massacre of Wuxia tropes.)
Play Again? Y/NYeah, sorry for the outburst.
Note that I didn't watch the movie the whole way through: I got so frustrated that I stopped watching. Also note that the very fact that you liked the movie, not that I'm accusing you for anything (seriously, I'm not), is that we have a clearly different taste. Lastly, I'm not good at elaboration (seriously, do I have to?) so bear it with me.
How about if I put it in this way; let's compare it to a movie whose formula was nearly as bad as it was, Transfromers. The movie's plot initiation was completely modeled after everything I hate about a typical Shonen fighting series.
I hate everyone in the universe. It's a sad, sad place where fighting and beating the living hell out of each other is treated as fun, and seriously, if it was treated more officially, like real MMA, I wouldn't have complained. I don't remember the details, since it has been years since last time I touched the thing, then again, to me Impression > Details; if details did not influence the impression, then it's not worth remembering.
Anyway, I'm pretty sure that was not satisfying elaboration, but really I don't want to waste my energy giving details on something that I hate. Sorry pal, if you like the movie, it's cool, it's just not my thing.
Continuously reading, studying, and (hopefully) growing.

Not what I was referring to.
Who watches the watchmen?