Champion

2005 "This is his story."
7.1| 1h21m| NA| en| More Info
Released: 12 March 2005 Released
Producted By: The Film Emporium
Country:
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
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Danny Trejo, you know the man. He has fierce tattoos, and frequently plays a thug in your favorite movies. Behind the ink and the wicked characters he plays on screen lies the story of a troubled childhood which included drug addiction, armed robbery and extensive prison time. Champion offers an intimate, one of a kind view into the life of Danny Trejo before he turned himself around and after.

Genre

Documentary

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Director

Joe Eckardt

Production Companies

The Film Emporium

Champion Videos and Images
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Champion Audience Reviews

Solidrariol Am I Missing Something?
Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.
Juana what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.
Kayden This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama
MartinHafer I noticed that one reviewer really, really, really hated this film. While some of their concerns about the quality of the production were fair, how could the film earn such a low score when Danny Trejo's life story is so exciting and engaging?! Even if it had been shot using an iPhone, it couldn't help but be worth your time.Danny Trejo is probably the busiest guy in Hollywood. In 2014, he appeared in about 20 different films--now that is clearly busy! The film is Danny and a few friends and family discussing his life. As a teen, he was a crazy punk with an apparent death wish. Then, after spending more than a decade in prison, he made a huge change--kicking drugs and alcohol, finding God and becoming a role model...not to mention a movie star! It's a really amazing story about redemption and I liked the simplicity of the story as it was told. Well worth seeing.
poe426 Trejo's rugged face is a road map of the road FROM Hell, and this documentary tells how he got There and Back; it's a revelation. Trejo pulls no punches, holds nothing back. Revisiting his old stomping grounds- the prison yard at San Quentin-, he says, "You got people here doing Forever." (In prison- THE ANIMAL FACTORY, as Eddie Bunker called it-, Steve Buscemi learns, "cell number" means something other than it does on the outside.) Trejo's account of the enthusiastic response to his first part was funny. "Where did you STUDY?" He responds by running down a list of places he robbed. In MACHETE, he says, "I play a Good bad guy." His role as a counselor is even more impressive. "Our prison guards make more money than our teachers." Dennis Hopper sums it up best: "He's a champion."
Albert Garcia First of all, let me say that I am a fan of Danny Trejo. I enjoy all of his movies and I wish him the best in everything he does, but this documentary did not do him justice. This piece had so much potential that I feel the director and producer messed up. The had some good footage but it lacked so many elements to tell his story. Here's what the story needed. First, there should of been a mixture of soundbites, photos, film footage, music, etc. to get the viewers attention. Draw the viewer in to the piece. Second, get rid of the producer asking questions on the couch and walking around with Danny on the streets. She was in the way, she was like a reporter in training. Third, what's up with the interview in the yard with him in the shade and the sun in the background. Fourth, he's been in so many movies that there was more than enough footage on him and yet the only thing the director and producer found was spy kids. 5th, he talks a lot of Soledad Prison, the director went to San Quentin and on the way back to L.A. he could not stop by Soledad to shoot a few shots of the prison. The most important thing to remember is to tell a story, listen to what Danny Trejo is saying and you know what kind of footage you need to tell his story. Just tell a story. Last thing is that the director never talked about his famous tattoos. What about the tattoos?
striking_ninja Don't get me wrong. I respect Danny Trejo more than with the rest of the world along with the girl who interviewed him, however not only did this film physically damage my eyes (though don't get me wrong; I love Mr. Trejo's physique as much as any human should), but the obscure cutaways to people who are strikingly NOT Danny Trejo nearly put me in tears. Additionally, the editor often switched the movie from colour to black and white. I felt this was a terrible decision, on account of black and white film being incapable of capturing Trejo's full beauty.I do give credit to Trejo himself who knows how to hold the screen. He truly draws the viewer in--his expressions and phrases and tales of woe captivated me in ways I'd never thought imaginable. Storytelling has never been more fun, and I encourage Mr. Trejo to provide his services to young preschool children.As far as the film-making goes, the documentarians clearly had little interest in Trejo. First and foremost, the interviewer sounded more bored than I was. Secondly, the movie was sent to me WITHOUT a proper birthdate for Danny Trejo. This date is incredibly important to people all over the world. Every November 11th, people everywhere have a moment of silence to remember and reflect on the tougher moments in Trejo's life. This should NOT have been left out.Last and the polar opposite of least (aka "most") importantly, I expected at least ONE shower scene. Seriously. WTF. Just one. I mean, c'mon--I took my kids to see THIS? Well, I guess it's back to photoshopping for me.All in all, Trejo's as awesome as ever but this movie fails to live up to the hype created by my friends and I.