PIT FIGHTER is a movie that lives up to it's title. Like ONG BAK and UNLEASHED, it emphasizes real martial arts combat with a hard edge. Given that it's a direct-to-DVD movie with a small ($500,000) budget, this is a great achievement indeed.
In PIT FIGHTER, Jack (Dominique Vandenberg)is a man with no past. For reasons he is unaware of, he has survived a near-fatal bullet to the brain, which has completely blasted his memory away with it, and leaving him stranded in a small town in Southern Mexico. With no money and no identity, Jack befriends Manolo (Steven Bauer, of SCARFACE) and soon discovers he is a martial arts expert, and gets involved in the sport of Pit Fighting, one of those absolutely-no-rules martial arts fight clubs, and after dominating as the reaigning champion for the last five years, he sees a woman he hasn't seen in five years. His past begins to return to him, and, after being baptized as a Catholic and trying to reconcile himself with God, he realizes, "I may not have been the best of men."
Belgian-born Dominique Vandenberg is no stranger to martial arts. A former legionairre, he has been training since the age of four, in everything from Muay Thai and Judo to Krav Maga and Kyokushinkai Karate. He is known for thraining Leonardo DiCaprio in knife-fighting for GANGS OF NEW YORK, but by far, hi most noted pre-PIT FIGHTER role was as the fighter who gets frozen by Sub-Zero in MORTAL KOMBAT.
Dom brings a suitably hard-edge to PIT FIGHTER. His kicking ability is fantastic, and the sight of his agile, quick hands in motion is nothing short of jaw-dropping. His many opponents range from challenging to push-overs. Dom's first match in th Pit along with his two matches against Andre 'Chyna' McCoy, who doubled for Lurence Fishburne in THE MTRIX, are the best.
If you like brutal but beautiful martial arts choreography, PIT FIGHTER is right up your alley.
