Wall Street Journal
Nicolas Cage has worn a lot of things on his head over the years, but the Burmese fisherman's bonnet... is something new. It's one of the few things in the movie that is.
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Jiu Jitsu
Academy Award winner Nicolas Cage uses Jiu Jitsu to fight a space ninja in this action sci-fi co-starring Frank Grillo (The Purge: Anarchy), Tony Jaa (Ong Bak), JuJu Chan (Wu Assassins) and Alain Moussi (Kickboxer: Retaliation).
Every six years, an ancient order of expert Jiu Jitsu fighters faces a vicious race of alien invaders in a battle for Earth. For thousands of years, the fighters that protect Earth have won…until now. When celebrated war hero Jake Barnes (Moussi) is defeated by Brax, the indomitable leader of the invaders, the future of humanity hangs in the balance. Injured and suffering from amnesia, Jake is rescued by Wylie (Cage), Keung and his team of fellow Jiu Jitsu fighters. They must help Jake to regain his strength in order to band together and defeat Brax in an epic battle that will once again determine the fate of mankind.
Less2020Rating: R16102 minsUSA
ActionFantasyScience Fiction
- Director:
- Dimitri Logothetis ('Kickboxer: Retaliation', 'Momo: The Sam Giancana Story')
- Writer:
- Dimitri LogothetisJim McGrath
- Cast:
- Nicolas CageMarie AvgeropoulosFrank GrilloTony JaaAlain MoussiJuju Chan
Jiu Jitsu | Reviews
28%46 reviewsRotten Tomatoes® Score
All reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Film School Rejects
Come for the wacky premise, stay for the action, and then leave wondering why there wasn't any jiu-jitsu.
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Decider
Nicolas Cage's few minutes of screen time are nowhere close to saving this confused, flimsy martial arts outing.
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Slant Magazine
Cage's amusing turn as a kooky hermit with an affinity for newspaper hats often feels awkwardly spliced into the film.
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Hollywood Reporter
Has all the barely-motivated action and sci-fi trappings of a middling videogame and, well, at least a little of the dramatic value.
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IGN
Feels like a deeply 2020 movie in that it is a barrage of WTF choices that hit without mercy until you either give in and go with the flow or just go mad.
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RogerEbert.com
Should have gone full-Sharknado and admitted that they're banking hard on Cage's anything-goes image.
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IndieWire
Cage finally appears about 40 minutes into the film as an eccentric expert swordsman who makes paper hats in his spare time.
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The Guardian
The action sequences are weirdly extended and bland, like game-play action from a first-person game.
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