Blood and Bone stars Michael Jai White as Isaiah Bone, an ex-con on a mission for a fallen jailhouse friend. After being released from prison he turns to the underground fighting scene and commences to destroy everyone that dares to square off against him. Eamonn Walker plays James, the successful local gangster with even bigger dreams who also happens to be an enforcer for Franklin McVeigh played by Julian Sands. The film begins with Kimbo Slice walking through the jailhouse hallways with a shank and a crew, looking to make a killing. The fighting starts there and escalates through the movie. If you’re a fan of mixed martial arts then there’s plenty here for you to enjoy. As the film unfolds we are treated to a series of street fights that have to have been the best ever choreographed for a direct to video movie. All the moves were believable and especially well executed by Michael Jai White.
This film had everything but sex and made me think of it as a Blacksploitation movie without the exploitation. Both the good guy and the bad guy were compelling and there is a heated racial conversation between Eamonn Walker’s and Julian Sands’ character that was quite memorable. This movie had decent acting, great action, and an actual story. Director Ben Ramsey did some nice work here. Despite moments of predictability, I was pleasantly surprised and enjoyed this film. Bottom line, it was good and should have been in the theater. I give it a 4 1/2 out of 5 marks.