Black Belt

Starring: Akihito Yagi, Tatsuya Naka , Yuji Suzuki

Synopsis:

The year is 1932 and in Japanese occupied Manchuria corrupt military forces have begun taking over the karate dojos for their own future benefit. Amidst this chaos, the master of one such dojo dies before passing on the “Kuro-obi” to a worthy successor, instead leaving it the hands of one of his apprentices, who must decide who deserves it most. After burying their master, the three most likely candidates are forced from their dojo and into the employment of the military to serve as martial arts instructors. Their individual responses to their fates lead each man on a vastly different and very personal path, at times pitting the former colleagues against each other as they seek the true understanding of their master’s teachings.

For practitioners of karate, Black Belt is a long awaited true portrayal of the Japanese martial art. Starring three actual black belt karate-ka, the film contains a number of fight scenes which dispel the myth that karate is a stiff, rigid form with no real-life application.

Unfortunately, Black Belt also stumbles hard in it’s climax – but more on that later.

Black Belt works best when contrasting the styles and philosophies of its two main protagonists, Taikan (Naka) and Giryu (Yagi). Taikan is headstrong, arrogant and power-hungry, while Giryu is humble and more in tune with his master’s teachings of using karate only for self-defence. This is best exemplified early on when they both take part in duels against army officers. Giryu manages to defeat his armed opponent purely using defensive blocks – which are so powerful they act as counter-attacks in their own right!

Following the death of their master, Giryu and Taikan’s paths differ greatly – Taikan joins the army’s efforts to take over the dojos, travelling around the country and challenging the various masters he encounters – and soundly beating each and every one of them. Giryu meanwhile is taken in by a kindly family and becomes embroiled in their troubles with the local yakuza.

Eventually Giryu and Taikan’s paths cross, as Taikan is obsessed with obtaining his deceased master’s Kuro-Obi – the black belt of the title. There is a martial arts myth about black belts, that they are in fact white belts which have blackened over time. This isn’t true, but their master’s belt is very old, faded and worn – a symbol of decades of training at a black belt level. Within the martial world, such a belt would command a high level of respect.

The stage is set then for a big showdown between the two karate-ka, Unfortunately this is where the film stumbles, badly. For some inexplicable reason, the ensuing fight devolves into a grappling match as the two wrestle around in the mud. To make matters worse, the film switches to black-and-white. It’s a very bizarre choice and it hurts the end of the film.

Verdict:

For most of it’s running time, Black Belt is a real breath of fresh air for martial arts fans and karate students in particular, giving the world a more authentic portrayal of karate. It’s unfortunate that the ending is such a stylistic mess.

7 out of 10 (MikeOutWest)

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