THE CHAMPION

REVIEWED BY CHARITY BISHOP

Our rating: 3 out of 5

Because of: violence

Rated:

With the Christian mainstream market struggling to keep up with secular media there's been a recent burst in production. Many of these films, such as The Omega Code, Megiddo, and Mercy Streets have done reasonably well at the box office... proving you can have action, excitement, and even danger without the corrupted moral system and lax standards of Hollywood. One in this huge gender of "maybes" is Carman's The Champion. The story centers around a pro-boxer-turned-preacher who sets up a gym for kids in a bad neighborhood. But even this Christian guy has a lot to learn. The streets are not kind... especially to a man of the faith. Orlando Leone was a world champion in his prime. Now retired and the head of a youth center for kids, he faces another kind of challenge... evangelizing the streets. 

His dream is to build a center where kids can get cleaned up and face the world anew. But to do that, he needs money. And money isn't easy to come by downtown. One evening his car alarm goes off. The young thief, Cesar, is dragged shrieking back to the center, handcuffed to a chair, and forced to wait while Orlando calls his mother. During the interval that passes the kid is present for the worship service and the two strike a deal. Cesar will quit the preteen gang punk routine and work at the center every afternoon until the broken car window is paid for. His mother, a lovely single Latino girl, is at first put off but soon learns to enjoy her trips to the center... and more importantly, the time she spends with Orlando. 

To pay the bills Orlando works nights as a security guard at a high-rise hotel uptown where pro-boxing champion Keshon Banks is staying. The heavyweight is gearing up for the biggest fight of his career... unfortunately, "women, wine and song" are his second passions. And all of the above are about to land him a one-way-ticket to hotel security. When Orlando comes in to quiet things down, Keshon goes for him and gets busted flat on his back. His title is now up for grabs and his crooked boss is getting antsy. The only way he can get satisfaction is to get Orlando back in the ring... and the only way Orlando can get the money he needs to build his center is to agree.

There's been a lot of dispute among the Christian crowd over Carman's success with The Champion. Some claim it's too secular, quite a few quibble over minor problems, but overall I thought it was a well-produced film that deserves a hand up. Not perfect by any means, a bit bloodthirsty perhaps, but it's a wonderful thing to be able to sit through a movie and not have to worry about crass profanity or sexual implications. The characters are well defined, each with their histories, many of which come to light before the end. The difference between Orlando's God-fearing world and Keshon's sinful indulgences is very clearly defined. Orlando prays, deals with street punks in a responsible, Christian manner, and is willing to lose everything for moral virtue.

The bad guys are nasty and the one loop between them is Orlando's fence-straddling brother Freddie, who eventually comes around to our side. Despite the good message, the top-notch special effects and the pulse-pounding climax, The Champion is not without its gritty flaws... mainly found in the ring. There is a great deal of boxing violence... punches, kicks, some blood... anything and everything you might see in "real life." Outside the ring the local street gang has it in for Orlando and his center and resort to many tactics to cause him strife. There is a car-bashing, a roadside accident that lends itself to a violent explosion and daunting fireball, and a flashback to a hit-and-run, where the body is shown flipping up over the hood and falling to the pavement. 

Other cautions come from a few low necklines and short hemlines and some table dancing at a party at Keshon's apartment. Crack smuggling is used as a side plot. There's also some gunplay, a wink at gambling... and the infamous "whoopass" scene. Keshon is filming a television ad for something called "whoopass." Unfortunately as an actor he stinks and they have to take at least a dozen re-shoots, in which he always manages to crack up at the wrong moment. Personally I found nothing wrong with it; its comical and clever near-innocence made it palatable. But it may disappoint many viewers hoping for a "Bible-thumping, straight-shootin' Christian flick." We must remember that Carman is not aiming at the Christian market; he's targeting the secular crowd that doesn't want to be "preached" at. They still get some solid God-talk... in many reverent prayers and mentions of God's will. It could open up a fine area for discussion afterward.

The Champion is not for everyone and certainly not for children under the age of thirteen. Boxing fans will enjoy the experience; non-boxing fans might like the twist of romance, humor, and the overall good feeling that one has from watching it. It may not earn this season's Angel Award but it is definitely a light in a dark world.

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