Today’s quick review: The Tournament. Every seven years, a tournament is held between thirty of the greatest assassins in the world. A small town is sealed off and equipped with surveillance cameras, and the assassins engage in a fight to the death, with the last survivor earning a huge cash prize. The tournament is organized and sponsored by a cabal of wealthy gamblers who use the contest for their own twisted amusement. Father MacAvoy (Robert Carlyle), a civilian priest with a drinking problem, gets dragged into the tournament when a competitor plants his tracker on him, effectively dropping off the grid while Father MacAvoy unwittingly takes his place. An assassin by the name of Lai Lai Zhen (Kelly Hu) comes to his aid, and together they brave the death game, hoping to survive long enough to get MacAvoy out of the competition. Their greatest obstacle along the way is Joshua Harlow (Ving Rhames), the legendary assassin who won the previous tournament, now back to take revenge on one of the contestants.
The Tournament is a low-budget action movie centered around a brutal death game between assassins. The premise, even if not entirely original, has good potential for an action movie, and The Tournament lives up to this potential quite well for a movie on a budget. While as shallow as one would expect from the premise, the plot has a few good twists to keep the action moving and the stakes in flux. The characters are not particularly strong or memorable, but they get the job done, with just enough depth to set up their motivations and prepare for plot twists. The action is surprisingly fun and serves as the main draw of the movie. The combat is fast-paced and violent, given variety by the various fighting styles of the assassins. Everything from parkour to brute-force shootouts makes an appearance among the fighters, and the film does a good job balancing its stunts’ cost and their impact.
The Tournament is a surprisingly enjoyable popcorn film when you’re in the mood for a bit of action. Watch it if you enjoy violent action movies with little in the way of plot or character depth. Skip it if you dislike violence or you are looking for recognizable actors, deep characters, or a meaningful plot.
6.1 out of 10 on IMDB. I give it a 6.5 to 7 for solid action, if not much else.