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Only the Strong
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List Price: $9.98
Our Price: $9.98
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
Starring: Mark Dacascos, Stacey Travis, Geoffrey Lewis, Paco Christian Prieto, Todd Susman
Directed By: Sheldon Lettich
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Binding: DVD
EAN: 0024543101475
Format: Closed-captioned
Label: 20th Century Fox
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: 20th Century Fox
Region Code: 1
Release Date: 2003-12-16
Running Time: 95
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Theatrical Release Date: 1993-08-27
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Editorial Reviews:
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Ex-Special Forces soldier Louis Stevens (Mark Dacascos) returns to Miami to find his former high school overrun by drugs and violence. A master of the Brazilian martial art, capoeira, Stevens pledges to straighten out a dozen of the school's worst students by teaching them this demanding and highly-disciplined fighting style. Slowly, his program begins to work, giving the students new hope and purpose. But the local drug lord, himself a martial arts expert, vows to stop Stevens' positive influence. Now Stevens must fight to save his own life, as well as the lives of his rebellious young students.
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: Only the Strong
Comment: Very nicely done story and it explores the beautiful movements of Capoeira style martial arts.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Little Known Action Classic
Comment: Mark Dacascos never really made it big as an action star for whatever reason. However he did seem to have the needed requirements: minimal acting chops, a ripped body, and the ability to do some amazing fight scenes. The last reason is what makes this movie a little known action classic. The movie is completely average, except the amazing kicks & other athletic moves preformed mostly by Dacascos. The best part of the fight scenes however is the fact that they don't look completely fake. With movies today they use so many wires & special effects that they leave whatever sense of reality the movie had previously maintained behind. I highly recommend this movie to anyone who likes old school action flicks. If you like this movie you will probably like "Drive" another little known classic featuring Dacascos. "Double Dragon" is another movie worth mentioning of his, but only because it was one of the first movies based on a videogame.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Only Dacascos!!!!!!!!!!!!
Comment: I like this movie alot. I remember catching this on HBO(of course) while staying home sick from school one day(knowing me, I probably wasn't actually sick, but that's beside the point). Glancing at the box cover, it's easy to mentally shelve this away alongside movies like American Ninja 4 or anything with Don "The Dragon" Wilson. Make no mistake about it though, while this may be a bit formulaic, it's does stand out. The plot is an often told tale of outsider who teaches misfit kids self respect and fair play. In this case, it's Mark Dacascos teaching Capoeira. Capoeira is a martial art from Brazil that seems to consist of a lot of spinning kicks. It almost looks like a dance of sorts(I think it is actually). I'm not an expert on martial arts by any means, but this style is fascinating to watch and the movie takes every opportunity to showcase it. That's a good thing too, coz this particular style isn't really shown in movies. Well, Dacascos teaches this style to the kids as part of a new unofficial high school program, and it becomes a hit not only with the students, but with the school and community. Now comes the Van Damme-ish part of the film. One of the most difficult(and in the end, most dedicated) students is cousin to a Brazilian drug lord who reigns over the neighborhood. He's not too happy about Dacascos' interference with his plans, or his turning his cousin against him. In a coincidence that only action films can muster, this drug lord is also a master of Capoeira. Soon the war is on between the drug lord and Dacascos, resulting in a big Capoeira showdown. No, it's not all terribly original, but something about this movie really works. What would normally comes across as corny, doesn't so much. Maybe it's the mesmerizing Capoeira scenes, maybe the performances. Well, maybe not the performances coz they're typical of this kind of film. Normally the name Mark Dacascos slapped across the front of a dvd cover box is reason to walk away considering he's never been the mark of quality for a film(though he always seems to have a good screen presence, bad movie or not). This movie could have made him a star though. It's not Shakespeare or anything, but he manages to take a tough guy martial arts character a la Van Damme/Seagal, and make him more human and likable. Yes, Dacascos does a fine job here, and he has some terrific moves. I very much recommend this one to anyone who likes to discover those good ones that slip through the cracks. One thing's for sure, after watching this, you're gonna have a helluva tough time getting that Brazilian chant out of your head.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Wonderful movie
Comment: If you are looking for a movie that showcases capoeira than this is the one to see. Actually based on true events, this movie tells of a soldier's return from where he was trained and the trials and challenges he takes on as he strives to make a difference in the lives of others and how that spills out into the community.
Customer Rating:
Summary: looking for capoeira? this is the movie
Comment: Amongst the thousands of martial arts films in circulation, it is near impossible to find one that focuses on Capoeira fighting. And among a few films that contain tournaments, such as the Bloodsport series, you can find a Capoeira fighter in the tournament. But if you are looking for a fighting style used throughout an entire film, Only The Strong is the only movie I know of.
In addition to a Capoeira treat, the movie stars Marc Dacascos, a fan favorite by many who has been in several notable films such as Drive, Cradle 2 The Grave, and American Samurai. Though not a true Capoeira fighter, Dacascos did a pretty good job of learning it for this film. Though the fights look unrealistic because of all the flash of the moves, nevertheless it is beautiful choreography that is quite original and never gets old. This is why we watch movies after all, to see fantasy fights that look sweet.
As for the story, though somewhat cheesy, I thought it too was quite original. The Mark Dacascos character returns to his old high school in Miami, Florida and begins a program to teach the absolute worst kids there the art of Capoeira. Unfortunately, one of the student's cousins, Silverio (played by Paco Christian Prieto - Street Law, Champions), tries to put an end to it, leading up to a big confrontation and fight between Dacascos and Prieto. I loved the fight scene. It lasted 4 minutes, about average length, and took place on a sgement of Miami beach at night. The choreography for this fight was amazing to watch.
You might even like the soundtrack for this film, which incorporates a lot of rhythm and beat for the fighting. Songs like "Bananawe" may stick in your head for hours and hours after watching.
I highly recommend Only The Strong if you want to see a lot of Capoeira fighting, or just something different in a martial arts movie. I also recommend Tony Jaa's newest movie "The Protector" if you want to see a really flashly fight involving Capoeira.
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