Let it be known that I am proud of the school I learned Tae Kwon Do from. Grand Master Chung Oh was trained by General Choy, the founder of Tae Kwon Do as it is known today. His strict requirements for ascension through the ranks of black belt have made his students particularly adept. Some schools give you a black belt only recognized by that school; ours is part of the Canadian Tae Kwon Moo Do Federation, and as such, the rank you attain is recognized by other schools and organizations. For example, not any school can send a student to the Olympics.
The first part of the movie that I experienced differently was in Dre's (Jaden Smith's) training. For many people it represented "his training period" which obviously looked tiring and in the beginning, boring. This is something people do not understand until they try and learn real martial arts. The training, especially at the start, is tedious, repetitive, seemingly pointless. It is dull and boring. Foundational moves must be practiced thousands of times before they become reflex. Hundreds of hours are put into learning how to do a move, and repeating it. The colour belt progression from white to assistant black is all about this. This training process took me personally 5 years to complete. After reaching black belt, training changes. Until this point, there is a lot of boring repetition.
The training at black belt is much more about perfecting the use of the now-reflex techniques. Some insisted upon forms are modified by the student to allow comfort and personal understanding to them. An arm tucked in less tightly, a thumb not placed behind the open palm are examples of things no longer trained necessarily into the black belt student. It is also at this level, usually, that one has the experience that Dre has in the movie when he realizes he moves without thinking. After so long taking off his jacket, putting it on, hanging it up, taking it down, etc. His teacher shows him the moves he's been learning. When he attacks, Dre is able to block and counter suddenly, and he is shocked by his own movements.
Though it is often known full well what moves you are learning and their purpose, there comes a time, often in the sparring ring, where you realize you are not thinking about the next move you will use. The speed of the fight picks up, as one person throws a kick, and in an instant you block and respond in kind to an unprotected area. The block actually is not thought about, because it would only be slowed down. True martial arts comes naturally. It's why you never want to startle a black belt.
Some of the tournament rulings seemed too harsh to be real. Often times a competitor who is injured intentionally by someone else is given an automatic win, instead of being kicked out. In fact, the opposing school may have been disqualified by the actions of the head instructor. It did make for a good movie plot though. What I really noticed most though was how true the amount of training was, how true the moment of shock at your own reflexes is, and how much good martial arts is not just fighting, but self control, and a way of life. I felt connected to many parts of this film as a martial artist.
Sometimes I think it sucks that I will most likely never get a chance to show many of my friends how capable I could be in a real fighting situation. I not been training regularly (which means I lack flexibility, and my reflexes have dulled somewhat), but the training I have had means that when I go back to the school after being away for a year without practice, my technique is still sharper than the lower belts. My training is a part of me, and after 13 years of training, I should hope so. Perhaps if there is some pandemic that requires that I fight for my life against hordes of people every day to survive, I will get a chance to show off the skills I have attained...
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