REDBELT (2008)

In David Mamet’s latest film, Mike Terry (Chiwetel Ejiofor) is a small-time jujitsu instructor with an unyielding sense of honor that kicks in when a jittery lawyer (Emily Mortimer) inadvertently causes a ruckus at his street-front dojo. From there, the plot unfolds in several directions, with an oppressive sense of inevitability overriding a clear, linear plotline. Mike's business is failing, as his wife (Alice Braga) curtly informs him, and the problems caused by the dojo incident puts the redbelt into deep red. A chance encounter with a drunken, slumming Hollywood star (Tim Allen, in a surprisingly fine dramtic performance) brings financial relief, but unfortunately, that turns out to be only a brief allusion. The instructor's brother-in-law, a sleazy fight promoter, tries to get Mike involved in a pro mixed-martial-arts tournament, but Mike's scruples again come into play. As with the best of Mamet's scripts, it’s initially unclear where any of this is going, but then all the threads suddenly, thunderously collide. The film unravels a bit in the last few moments amid unanswered story questions and a simplistic, ROCKY-style climax. But until that moment, REDBELT is Mamet's richest film of the decade and worth a look, whether you're into martial arts or not.