Refreshingly unsentimanetal and empowering

Diana is an 18 year old girl with problems at school and at home. Her mother is dead, her dad seems to ignore her and she has little interests in the things that are so important to other girls her age. When she picks up her younger brother from the gym where he boxes she decides she wants to train herself. Her coach soon recognises her talent and pushes her further. When she meets Adrian, a promising young boxer in the gym, she must decide between her boxing interests and her feelings for him.

For someone like me who is neither interested in boxing nor particularly fond of 'girl power' films this is a particularly remarkable achievement. I can only describe it as a power film that stands out from the crowd because of the tight direction that avoids sentimentality, strong character development and the phenomenal acting talent of Michelle Rodriguez who really gives a knockout performance here (pardon the pun). In fact, this is pretty much a film for everyone: if you like action you get plenty of fight scenes, if you like acting you will hardly find better and if you like to keep your brain switched on then Dianas fight against boxing prejudices and her personal empowerment will give you enough food for thought.

My verdict: Go for it! It really is a knockout!