Never Back Down

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Never Back Down

PG-13

Released Mar 14, 2008

1h 54m

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20%

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83 Reviews

34%

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250,000+ Ratings

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).

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Critics Consensus

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

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Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

A naive and truly obnoxious movie about the world of Mixed Martial Arts.

Rated: 1/5

Oct 18, 2008

Full Review

Steve Davis

Austin Chronicle

While the character of Jake isn't an emotionally taxing one, Faris has his moments, especially in a low-key scene in which he attempts to explain why his character is full of rage.

Rated: 2.5/5

Oct 18, 2008

Full Review

Tim Grierson

Screen International

A generic, violent underdog story that pays a lot of lip service to non-violence when its characters aren't busy kicking and punching the tar out of each other.

Jul 23, 2008

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James Croot

The Post NZ

Once again Wadlow does his best to keep a tired-looking format looking fresh with plenty of camera trickery and CSI-style anatomy lessons to liven up the fight scenes. Unfortunately, his good work is undermined by the cast's perfect teeth

Mar 16, 2023

Full Review

S. Jhoanna Robledo

Common Sense Media

Bloody fight film has heart, but it's no champion.

Rated: 2/5

Dec 31, 2010

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Bullz-Eye.com

Rated: 2.5/5

Oct 18, 2008

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Elaina R

Very good movie I would recommend watching this I will never understand the bad reviews

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/14/25

Full Review

thiago s

Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

07/11/25

Full Review

Idodeclareindeed B

If you properly set your expectations, this is actually a fun, exciting fighting movie with a very strong performance from Sean Faris, it's a shame I haven't seen him in more movies. He really puts everything into it and it shows, despite the dialogue which is often awkward. A high school football player says to another - "The sauce? That s***'ll kill ya" oookay. Amber Heard is in it, bless her heart. Djimon Honsou is great in it as a coach and you really feel the relationship between he and Sean. Great cinematography and soundtrack as well. It's really one of my favorite movies despite being silly or extra hollywood in parts.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

05/27/25

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Ed R

One of the best and most impactful MMA movies of our generation!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/23/25

Full Review

Paul G

Such an under rated movie . Heard was drop dead gorgeous in this, Coach Roqua as a character to this day still makes me want to do better in life , the parasocial relationship reminds me of my coaches in high school. The bully theme resonates with me and they picked the perfect villain . And as a ufc fan it’s just solid , everything about the movie is nostalgia , I used to go to pretty sweet house parties growing up so there’s that too. If it’s not for you because you can’t relate I get it , like if you never were on a good sports team or had a good coach and never was social but it really delivered for me and still does to this day

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/13/25

Full Review

steven d

Really good martial arts movie.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/15/24

Full Review

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Jeff Wadlow

Director

Djimon Hounsou

Jean Roqua

Sean Faris

Jake Tyler

Amber Heard

Baja Miller

Cam Gigandet

Ryan McDonald

Leslie Hope

Margot

Never Back Down: Official Clip - Tyler vs. Dak-Ho

1:40

Never Back Down: Official Clip - Training With Roqua

2:17

Never Back Down: Official Clip - Jake's Apology

1:54

Never Back Down: Official Clip - Show Me What You Got

2:14

Never Back Down: Official Clip - Intimidation

1:08

Never Back Down: Official Clip - Road Rage

1:18

Never Back Down: Official Clip - The Final Fight

2:59

Never Back Down: Official Clip - Learning to Breathe

2:00

Never Back Down: Official Clip - Party Beatdown

2:28

Never Back Down: Official Clip - First Lesson

1:41

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Synopsis

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).

Director: Jeff Wadlow
Producer: Craig Baumgarten, David Zelon
Screenwriter: Chris Hauty
Distributor: Summit Entertainment
Production Co: Mandalay Pictures, Summit Entertainment
Rating: PG-13 (Violence|Intense Sequences of Fighting|All Involving Teens|Some Sexuality|Language|Mature Thematic Material|Partying)
Genre: Action
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 14, 2008, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 20, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA): $24.8M
Runtime: 1h 54m
Sound Mix: Dolby SRD, DTS, SDDS
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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