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Defense against unarmed attack

Seppo Vesala | Helsinki, - Finland | 09/23/2004

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This DVD presents several techniques for defending agains unarmed attack. The punch defences are covered in Basic combatives film, and in this film they present defences against several different chokes, headlocks and bearhugs. The DVD includes two bonus techniques that are not presented in the VHS version. The film opens with almost 15 minute long discussion about the basic principles of Krav maga system (system that relies on instinctive responses to an attack, the demand for realistic training and so on).

As with the previous film (basic combatives), the instruction is generally good. Each technique starts with a dramatized scene, then they show the technique at full speed, then at slow motion (again, they have not slowed the film down, rather the people instructing the techniques are moving slowly). After that, they break the technique down to learning stages to make it easier to learn the technique. When needed, the defender performs the technique as "shadow boxing", without the attacker (so that the attacker's body would not block the view).

In some of the techniques, they use counterattacks that were not instructed in the basic combatives tape (like palm strike). They don't discuss breaking the tunnel vision while using the techniques, and they don't mention other physical effects stress will have on a person while engaged in fight. I found that somewhat odd, as in my Krav maga school, they emphasize these aspects of real-life combat in training.

The production of the film is of the same standard as in the basic combatives film. Everything works quite nicely, but there is slight amateurish feel to the production.

There were some basic techniques I was missing. Naturally, they can't fit everything into one DVD, but if they had moved the basic principles to the introduction film, they could have fitted one or two more techniques to this film.

Run time: 1:18"