Peaceful Warrior

hxq2007

Move over Yoda, Mr. Miyagi, Coach Carter and all you other
mentor-philosophers --there's a new teacher in the School of Tough Love and
Hard Knocks. His name is Socrates, he's a Zen master played by Nick Nolte,
and he's the star of the inspirational drama \"eaceful Warrior.\"
The picture is based on a bestselling book by motivational writer Dan
Millman. I'm not familiar with the source material, but would imagine that
bookstores shelve it right next to \"Tuesdays With Morrie.\"

The adaptation gets into gear when Socrates takes on hotshot college gymnast
Dan (Scott Mechlowicz) and teaches his young pupil the real meaning of life.
By the time the story arrives at Dan's climactic routine on the still rings,
the audience has shed a few tears, but only as a knee-jerk reaction to the
screenplay, which airs out every musty cliche from the locker room of sports
movie convention.

The story is actually the least interesting part of \"eaceful Warrior,\" which
benefits from director Victor Salva's spirited direction and Nolte's
understated performance.

In real life, Socrates -- who goes around saying things like \"the only thing
that matters: this moment, here, now\" -- would be insufferable, but Nolte
wisely underplays his scenes as the sage. Still, this guy just cannot hold
his end of a conversation, to say nothing of small talk and giving a straight
answer. I shudder to think what would happen if you asked Socrates how he
likes his coffee.