Best of the Best

At face value, this independent film seems like just another chop socky movie. Eric Roberts stars as Alex Grady, a widowed father who works in a factory but dreams of making the U.S. National Karate Team. Along with four other hopefuls who labor under the strict physical tutelage of the hard driving coach (James Earl Jones), Alex prepares to take on the highly touted team from Korea. The majority of the film focuses on how these five different men work through their individual differences to form a team. Best of the Best suffers from the standard clichés of the sports film genre: the mandatory musical pumping iron sequence, the drawn out slow motion karate bouts, the predictable melodramatic "human" drama to put flesh on a thin story. Yet, at the same time, the strong acting of Roberts, Jones, Sally Kirkland, and the other contenders, coupled with the surprisingly corny but effective twist ending make the best of the best moments very good indeed. Even as you inwardly loathe the manipulative qualities of the film, you find yourself cheering on the underdogs in the final scenes (that's just human nature, I suppose). Though flawed in a dozen different directions, Best of the Best emphasizes sportsmanship over winning, and would be appropriate for young adult audiences. Recommended. (R. Pitman} [DVD Review--Sept. 21, 2004--Columbia TriStar, 97 min., PG-13, $19.95--Making its debut on DVD, Bob Radler's 1989 Best of the Best bows on an extra-less disc that sports an anamorphic widescreen transfer with mild flaws (scratches, dirt, grain, and '80s big hair music) but one that is serviceable overall, and Dolby Digital surround audio. Bottom line: as Rocky-lite efforts go, Best of the Best is not bad, and the powerhouse cast--Roberts, Kirkland, Jones--definitely helps. Recommended for larger collections.]