Mamet's Redbelt trailer.

When I was a kid, I used to love a good martial arts flick. Mind you, not a kung-fu flick - because there is a difference between the two and my love for kung-fu started when I was a teenager - but a straight-up, American dude kicking and fighting action movie. The stuff Cannon films used to pump out every other week back in the 80's. These films always revolved around secret tournaments ran by drug kingpins who had a squad of hot chicks standing in their office and an army of steroid mutant zombies in ninja costumes. It seems so ridiculous now, but when I was a kid, movies like The Best of the Best and American Ninja were reality to me.

That's why I am excited about this trailer for the movie Red Belt. It's set in the world of American martial arts tournament fighting, and stars Chiwetel Ejiofor (American Gangster, Dirty Pretty Things) as a trainer in the Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) circuit. But if the chance to seewatching Ejiofor kick some butt wasn't reason enough to see this movie, it was written and directed by David Mamet, the master of tough-guy dialogue.

Redbelt drops into limited release on April 25th. Here's hoping it makes its way to Greensboro soon after that. Check out this trailer: