Undisputed III: Redemption

Undisputed III: Redemption
Undisputed III: Redemption
	Official DVD cover
Directed by	Isaac Florentine
Written by	David N. White
Produced by	Israel Ringel
Starring	Scott Adkins; Mykel Shannon Jenkins; Mark Ivanir; Hristo Shopov; Robert Costanzo; Marko Zaror;
Cinematography	Ross W. Clarkson
Edited by	Irit Raz
Music by	Minos Matsas
Production; company	Nu Image
Distributed by	Warner Home Video
Release dates	April 17, 2010 (ActionFest); June 1, 2010 (United States);
Running time	96 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Box office	$285,709

Undisputed III: Redemption is a 2010 American action film directed by Isaac Florentine and starring Scott Adkins, Mykel Shannon Jenkins, Mark Ivanir and Hristo Shopov. The third installment in the franchise started by the 2002 action film Undisputed, it takes place several years after the events of Undisputed II: Last Man Standing.

Plot

Years after his defeat by George "Iceman" Chambers, Yuri Boyka, now a prison janitor, hears about the Prison Spetz Competition (PSC), an inter-prison fighting tournament offering a chance at early release. Boyka trains privately to recover from his knee injury and challenges the current PSC champion, Vladimir Sykov, defeating him and becoming the Russian representative.

At Gorgon prison in Georgia, Boyka joins a group of international fighters. They face harsh conditions while Colombian fighter Raul "Dolor" Quiñones receives special treatment and drugs. Boyka clashes with American fighter Jericho "Turbo" Jones, but they eventually develop trust and train together. Boyka learns that the tournament is fixed for-profit and confronts the organizers with the help of mob bosses Gaga and Gio Farnatti. Boyka and Turbo advance in the tournament along with Dolor and Brazilian fighter Rodrigo Silva.

Turbo and Boyka are thrown into solitary confinement after a fight but are released due to their managers' influence. Boyka realizes the managers only care about their profit and plans to defeat Dolor. During the semi-finals, Boyka wins against Silva and offers him respect. The organizers arrange for Turbo to be beaten by guards, pushing Boyka to plan an escape. They fight the guards, escape, and Boyka returns to face Dolor alone.

Dolor takes the lead, exploiting Boyka's weak knee. However, Boyka adapts by using a blood-soaked pad as a brace and employs a new fighting style. He defeats Dolor, ruining the managers' bets. Farnatti kills Rezo but is shot by the warden. Boyka is not freed due to Turbo's escape, but Turbo rescues him from execution. They meet Gaga, who reveals he bet on Boyka all along. Boyka and Turbo part ways, vowing to have a future match. Boyka walks towards freedom with the money, while Turbo reveals his real name as Jericho. They part on good terms, and Boyka laughs joyfully.

Cast

Scott Adkins as Yuri Boyka, Russian fighter and protagonist
Mykel Shannon Jenkins as Jericho "Turbo" Jones, the hot-headed American fighter
Mark Ivanir as Gaga, Russian Mafia boss and he represents Boyka
Hristo Shopov as Kuss, Warden of the Gorgon Prison in Tbilisi, Georgia
Robert Costanzo as Gio Farnatti, Italian American Mafia boss and he represents "Turbo"
Marko Zaror as Raul "Dolor" Quiñones, Colombian fighter and enforcer of Cali Cartel
Vernon Dobtcheff as Rezo, Georgian Mafia boss and he represents "Dolor"
Velislav Pavlov as Chief Guard
Nikolai Sotirov as Announcer
Esteban Cueto as Vladimir Sykov, the dominant fighter at the prison Boyka was being held at, would have become the Russian competitor if Boyka did not challenge him.
Plamen Manasiyev as Lead Parole Board Manager
Valentin Ganev as Markov, Warden of the Chornya Cholmni Prison in Russia
Stefan Shterev as Sports Book Clerk
Dimo Dimov as Gaga's Bodyguard
Yordan Zahariev as Referee #1
Pavel Doichev as Referee #2
Lateef Crowder as Rodrigo Silva, Brazilian fighter who uses capoeira.
Ilram Choi as Chai Lam, North Korean fighter who uses taekwondo, he is easily eliminated by Dolor
Anton Trendafilov as Old Waterman
Ivan Zaharov as Musician #1
Nikolay Petrov as Musician #2
Kiril Efremov as Guard #1
Michael Baral as Casino Manager
Vladimir Bonev as Businessman (uncredited)
Dimitar Doichinov as Andrei Kraitz (uncredited), Croatian fighter who is defeated by Turbo
Borislav Iliev as Prison Guard #1 (uncredited)
Trayan Milenov-Troy as Jean Dupont (uncredited), French fighter who is defeated by Boyka
Radoslav Parvanov as Petros Mavros (uncredited), Greek fighter who is defeated by Silva
Velizar Peev as Prison Guard #2 (uncredited)

Release

Theatrical

It was released in the United States on June 1, 2010.

Reception

Box office

The film grossed $282,548 in Lebanon and United Arab Emirates.^[2]

Critical response

James Marsh of Screen Anarchy praised Florentine's direction for capturing the "flow and [the] combinations" of the "innovative, exciting and technically groundbreaking battles" and his cast of charismatic action stars, singling out Zaror for having "a natural eye-catching screen quality that's hard to ignore", concluding that: "[A]s someone who normally demands genuine drama from real characters along with his martial arts, I was overpowered, overwhelmed and left battered and bleeding at the total mercy of this movie. Resistance is futile. Undisputed 3: Redemption rules."^[3] Bill Gibron of DVD Talk gave note of the film being "simplified cinema set up to achieve certain stock goals", concluding that: "Undisputed III promises nothing more than a series of well filmed beatdowns, and delivers on every account. It might not be rocket science, but it's not Rocky either. Instead of finesse, all we get here is fighting - and that's perfectly fine."^[4]

Accolades

Undisputed III won Best Director Award and Best Fight Choreographer in the 2010 edition of ActionFest.^[5]

Sequel

According to Movie Cricket, Adkins confirmed that there will be a fourth installment to the Undisputed series. On May 29, 2014, When asked whether there would be an Undisputed 4, Adkins replied, "Yes, it is definitely something we are pursuing. We are working on the script at the moment trying to get all the departments happy with what we are trying to do. It’s taking longer than I want to be honest but you know it is difficult financing these films. In this day and age those type of straight to DVD films don’t make the sort of money they used to make in the 90s/early 2000s. So it is a bit of a precarious business at the moment and that is why it is taking so long but we are definitely all trying to get it going because we appreciate what following that character of Boyka has and you know, I love playing that character and I can’t wait to return to him and we’ve got some good ideas on where to take the character."^[6]

Production had begun on Boyka: Undisputed in June 2015 with Scott Adkins returning as Boyka. The plot involves the fighter, who is now free, attempting to go as a professional fighter when he accidentally kills someone in the ring. However, to make amends for what he has done, he must engage in a series of fights to save the wife of the man he killed. Shooting was completed in early August 2015 for a 2017 release date.