Mendoza’s debut in sports drama may have failed to pull off a ‘knock-out’ victory, but the punches it has thrown are pretty solid not to leave a sensational impact.
HBO Asia
Actors: Shogen, Ronnie Lazaro, Beauty Gonzalez, Kaho Minami, Vince Rillon, Jun Nayra, Takuhei Kaneko, Evangeline Torcino, Maya Kisanuki, Criztian Pitt Laurente, Criz Russu Laurente, Criz Sandler Laurente, Shoma Kobashikawa, Jeffrey Rowe, Jomari Angeles.
Genre: Sports, Drama
Premise: Nao Tsuyama’s troubled past helps him cope through boxing. He dreams of becoming a professional boxer despite having one leg made of prosthetic. Upon application, the Japanese Boxing Committee deems Nao unfit to fight due to his condition, he cannot legally fight in Japan. There isn’t much left for Nao other than boxing, this urges him to prove that he can become one. Nao leaves his hometown Okinawa, leaves his mom MINA and sister MAYA, and travels to General Santos City, Philippines – home of well-known Filipino boxing champions.
Running Time: 110 minutes
Director: Brillante Ma Mendoza
Watch it on: HBO GO
Why You Should See It:
Prolific Filipino filmmaker Brillante Ma Mendoza is firm in his maiden venture to sports drama. One could say that it’s a challenging task to tackle, but he, who has decades spent in stellar filmmaking, unsurprisingly pulls it off, albeit some blemishes that could have been eliminated with a few polishing.
Gensan Punch follows the trail of Okinawa-born boxer, Nao Tsuyama, as he embarks on a journey from his hometown to the Southern Philippine city of General Santos, to make his dreams of becoming a professional boxer, come true. A car accident, which took his right leg, denied him the chance of pursuing a boxing career in his homeland. He sets his sight upon the Philippines.
Immediately upon arriving in the Philippines, he signs up with Gensan Punch boxing gym and finds a coach in the man named Rudy (Ronnie Lazaro), a former world champion in the sport. Tsuyama quickly found comfort in his new environment, amid the cultural and language barriers.
In one angle, Gensan Punch can be seen as a sports biopic, a semi-documentary intended to showcase realities in boxing. As it is based upon the story of a real-life Japanese boxer, the film gives that sense of looking at it through the very same lens of Tsuyama. While the film offers a vivid view of the players within this dangerous sport, it fails to examine the life outside the ring. There is no question in how solid those blows the film’s brightest moments delivered, but it leaves a lot to be desired when it comes to shedding light upon the life a boxer lives when he’s not trying to win a match. It feels as if such part is vital in fully understanding the film, which it fails to deliver.
That said, there are beautiful parts of this inspiring feature that should linger longer in viewers’ consciousness. Shongen with his near-perfect physique and handsome looks–has no trouble breathing Tsuyama to life. The model-turned-actor certainly fits the requirements demanded by his role, which he articulately pulled off enough to generate empathy for the character.
Mendoza has quite handsome choices in camera direction, which allowed him to capture the most intimate and exquisite moments inside the ring, thereby granting his feature a vivid portrait of the narrative he earnestly aspires to create.
5 – Excellent
4 – Very Good
3 – Good
2 – Tolerable
1 -Terrible
You can now stream Brillante Ma Mendoza’s Gensan Punch on HBO Go. Watcch the official full trailer below:
