Never Back Down

2008, Action, 1h 54m

84 Reviews 250,000+ Ratings

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critics consensus

Though not without its pleasures, Never Back Down faithfully adheres to every imaginable fight movie cliché. Read critic reviews

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Movie Info

Jake (Sean Faris) moves to Orlando, Fla., with his mother (Leslie Hope) and brother (Wyatt Smith). He feels like an outsider in his new school and frequently lets his temper flare out of control. But Jake wants to fit in, and he decides to go to a party with his classmate Baja (Amber Heard). There, Jake is pushed into a fight and humiliated. Another classmate (Evan Peters) sees what happened, and encourages Jake to visit martial arts trainer Jean Roqua (Djimon Hounsou).
  • Rating:
    PG-13 (Violence|Intense Sequences of Fighting|All Involving Teens|Some Sexuality|Language|Mature Thematic Material|Partying)
  • Genre:
    Action
  • Original Language:
    English
  • Director:
    Jeff Wadlow
  • Producer:
    Craig Baumgarten, David Zelon
  • Writer:
    Chris Hauty
  • Release Date (Theaters):
     wide
  • Release Date (Streaming):
  • Box Office (Gross USA):
    $24.8M
  • Runtime:
  • Distributor:
    Summit Entertainment
  • Production Co:
    Summit Entertainment, Mandalay Pictures
  • Sound Mix:
    Dolby SRD, DTS, SDDS
  • Aspect Ratio:
    Scope (2.35:1)

Cast & Crew

Djimon Hounsou
Jean Roqua
Sean Faris
Jake Tyler
Amber Heard
Baja Miller
Cam Gigandet
Ryan McDonald
Leslie Hope
Margot
Evan Peters
Max
Wyatt Smith
Charlie
Affion Crockett
Beatdown
Neil Brown Jr.
Aaron
Lauren Leech
Jenny
Tilky Jones
Eric
Jeff Wadlow
Director
Chris Hauty
Writer
Craig Baumgarten
Producer
David Zelon
Producer
Lukas Ettlin
Cinematographer
Ida Random
Production Design
Victor Du Bois
Film Editor
Debra Weinfeld
Film Editor
Judy L. Ruskin
Costume Designer
Sarah Halley Finn
Casting
Randi Hiller
Casting
Michael Wandmacher
Original Music
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Critic Reviews for Never Back Down

All Critics (84) | Top Critics (25) | Fresh (19) | Rotten (65)

View All Critic Reviews (84)

Audience Reviews for Never Back Down

  • Sep 13, 2015
    Better than I expected with some pretty good fight scenes, Ok the acting is pretty bad and it did feel like adult version of Karate Kid, But if you can ignore all of that and just enjoy the fights you will like it.
    Jamie C Super Reviewer
  • Nov 29, 2013
    [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/user/icons/icon13.gif[/img]
    Directors C Super Reviewer
  • Nov 25, 2011
    Decently entertaining with a good pace, but, ultimately, the movie includes every fighting movie cliché in the book. It is a typical movie about the underdog that must beat the championship fighter and win the girl. No legitimate ingenuity as the film is incredibly predictable. The fight scenes are overly cinematic, but the choreography is quite good. An adrenaline-charged teen flick that isn`t quite the worst Rocky imitation. (see "Ricky 1")
    Suneel J Super Reviewer
  • Sep 24, 2011
    Never Back Down is a film designed for the teen UFC and mixed martial arts fandom and the rest of us are wishing we watched Warrior instead. The film uses the underdog template but replaces the character with an unlikable lead who barely shows any compassion and remorse. It's a strange mix of film-making and will alienate any viewer who wishes the lead actor to overcome the villain of the film. The hero and villain share a smile glance at the end, even after the villain has beaten up and hospitalized himself and his best friend during the film. Those kind of moments are throughout the entire film. The film lacks a general appeal to the masses and quite rightly this has fallen into obscurity. It's a shame it wasn't able to follow the better films like Rocky, Warrior or The Karate Kid when it comes to creating a film with an uplifting story about the heroes journey. 18/10/2020
    Brendan O Super Reviewer
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