The Art of Self-Defense

This movie got fair reviews and features Jesse Eisenberg, so I thought, “Why not?”  Eisenberg plays Casey, a very mild-mannered bookkeeper. He is afraid of other men, and is ridiculed and bullied.  Eventually, he is brutally mugged.  Terrified now of everything, he thinks about buying a gun, but ends up joining a karate studio hoping to learn some self-defense strategies and the courage to stand up for himself.  As Jesse becomes more adept and confident, the movie becomes darker and darker.  He is advanced to the next color belt, seemingly before he is ready, and then invited to attend surprisingly brutal  night classes.  The overall premise of the movie was quite interesting; but the plot development was slow, and it took soooooooo long to get to the real nub of what was going on.  It became predictable, and I was able to guess the main plot twists, so I wasn’t surprised.  A few of the supporting characters stand out, especially the enigmatic Sensei of the karate school played by Alessandro Nivola.  I can’t recommend this one; however, you might like it if you love quirky movies.  I usually do, but this one was just too slow for me.