Fighter

2007
6.5| 1h30m| en
Details

Aïcha, a high-school student, is a passionate kung fu fighter. Her Turkish parents expect her to get good grades so she can get into medical school, like her brother Ali. But school doesn´t inspire her. Defying her family, Aïcha starts secretly training at a professional, co-ed kung fu club. A boy, Emil, helps Aïcha train for the club championship and they fall in love. But the rules of life are not as simple as the rules of kung fu, and Aïcha is forced to decide who she is and what she wants.

AD
AD

Watch Free for 30 Days

All Prime Video Movies and TV Shows. Cancel anytime. Watch Now

Trailers & Clips

Also starring Sadi Tekelioglu

Reviews

Moustroll Good movie but grossly overrated
filippaberry84 I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.
Jonah Abbott There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.
Staci Frederick Blistering performances.
A_Different_Drummer Makes the Karate Kid look like Romper Room.Not a martial art movie as such, more of a coming of age film, but the reason it caught attention is that the fighting scenes are actually better than you would find in films that actually ARE fight films! Great direction, great acting. Great use of background and motion. The central character has many scenes where she is running seemingly without direction or purpose, a metaphor for the twists and turns in her life.Does a great job of showing western viewers the "other" side of the coin, what is like to come from a culture that limits expression rather than encourages it.Very engaging. Highly recommended.
ryansassy1 "What has been will be again,what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun."--Ecclesiastes 1:9So the most important question is, was it done well? I think that's a general Yes. And the second most important question is, does it pass the Bruce test? (i.e., both interesting ideas and good Kung Fu?) Again, Yes.The plot is lifted straight from Karate Kid, mixed in a little with Dragon, and reinterpreted with a Turkish teenaged girl as the lead-- not a problem for me. Hey, if the story is good, the actors are competent, and the fight scenes well-choreographed, then that's all I need from my martial arts dramas. But just to be clear, this film is primarily a drama, not an action movie, nor a true martial arts movie: the focus is mainly on the lead, her personal problems, and her relationships with family; the Kung Fu serves almost as a poetic metaphor for her inner struggles.Fighter's strengths: good cinematography, especially the fight scenes and the fantasy sequences; entertaining Kung Fu scenes; solid coming-of-age story; interesting exploration of culture clash between the Muslim immigrants and the native population of Sweden; sympathetic and charismatic lead actor Semra Turan in her debut role as Aicha--in fact, everybody in the cast was effective and believable.Fighter's weaknesses: genre confusion -- did it want to be fantasy or realism? because some pretty unrealistic fighting powers suddenly materialize in the middle of even the non-fantasy fight sequences (come on, she did a back flip over her *standing* opponent?); some questionable writing lapses, such as how did she pay for her elite new Kung Fu club, and why did her stodgy father even let her train in martial arts for 3 years in the first place?; an over-reliance on ready-made martial arts movie clichés such as the tournament held at night in some obscure "underground" venue, dramatically lit by flaming tin barrels. My eyes rolled more than once during that one.It's far from perfect -- nonetheless, Fighter was a heartfelt story which kept me engaged to the very end. Come to think of it, that reminds me of something else about this film that I liked very much; without giving away any details (I am determined that this review will need no spoiler alerts!), Fighter left a few side conflicts unresolved. The film didn't try to wrap up each and every story arc in a neat little bow. I believe this is intentional, because for a long time afterward the dangling story threads provoked me to consider the issues Fighter presented a little more deeply. Basically, this film respects the viewer enough to depart from the expected resolutions. I would have awarded it 7 stars, but that earned it one extra.I think Bruce would have approved.
psymedium I watched this movie with no prior knowledge of it, and was immediately sucked into the film. It is a film that is beautiful to look at and has the ability to evoke emotions within the viewer causing them to live the story with the main character. The cinematography was absolutely wonderful, and served to make the film somehow realistic and surreal at the same time. The soundtrack was perfect and each song seemed to compliment the moments on screen, but was almost a character in and of itself. The acting was believable and realistic and the star of the movie "Aicha" really makes the audience connect with her and feel her plight, and the choreography of the fight scenes was wonderful. I was so pleasantly surprised by this movie and it is one that I will absolutely have to recommend to friends.
disdressed12 i found this little independent gem to be well crafted.it's about a Turkish girl living in Copenhagen,who wants to do her own thing,but her family being very conservative Muslims have their owns plans for her.the title obviously gives much of the plot away.but there's more to the movie than that.there's the cultural divide,and the gender bias as well.the fighting scenes are very well choreographed and are very elegant,almost balletic.there are no fancy camera tricks here.i was also impressed with the lead actress Semra Turan.i also like the ending.it wasn't your typical ending.then again,this isn't your typical movie.i'd say it's well worth a watch.for me,Fighter is a 9/10