As anyone who has spent more than a few hours with me will tell you, I'm not really a fighter. I am one of those people who would much rather tap out before any fight has begun than throw a single punch. I'd rather stay quiet than challenge someone I don't agree with. And in general, I tend to take whatever is dished out to me and be on my way instead of trying to do something about it.

But at the same time, I must admit that there are things I probably should have fought for that I have not. I must recognize that if there are things that aren't worth fighting for, there must be things that are. And as I sit down and reflect on the movie Never Back Down, I must ask myself, what makes a fight worth fighting and what doesn't?

From beginning to end, Never Back Down is a movie about fighting. It's about a high school boy named Jake (Sean Faris) who is "a natural born brawler." It's about the all-holds-barred Friday night fight club tradition at his new high school in Orlando. It's about Ryan (Cam Gigandet), the school's fighting champion and reigning Mr. Popular. And it's about Roqua (Djimon Hounsou), a mixed martial arts instructor who has a bit more respect for fighting than Jake and Ryan.

When the movie begins, Jake cannot seem to keep from getting into fight after fight after fight. As cheesy as it is, all his fights pretty much begin with a "Yo Daddy." But as we learn more about Jake, we find that that very taunt has more meaning for him than it does for most of us. You see, his father died in a drunk driving accident—his father being drunk, and Jake being the one in the passenger seat who didn't stop him from driving. And every time someone pushes Jake back there, it is as if his anger at his father, at himself, and at the situation just explodes all over the place.

While Jake's fighting seems to only erupt when triggered, Ryan's is a show he eagerly puts on for others on a regular basis. Ryan fights to be at the top and to prove he is the best. Every time he throws a punch, it is to show whoever it hits that they are inferior and the crowds watching that he is superior. Without a crowd, Ryan won't dish out more than a shove. And when Ryan is denied the chance to prove he is the best, let's just say he's not happy.

But the problem with both Jake and Ryan's fighting is that for as much as they do it, it doesn't get either of them anywhere. The problem for Jake is that the anger that fuels his fights stems from things he cannot change. With every beating he gives to others, it is as if he is trying to kill a reality that he does not want to exist. But after each fight, the trouble is that it still is there and he is still angry.

For Ryan, the issue is that he is like the champion who only wins because he has killed all of his competitors. The problem he faces is that if his only value is found in putting others below him, he will spend his entire life doing just that. And as a number of characters show us later in the movie, eventually that kind of self-value is one that everyone will see right through.

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