Movie Review: The Kingdom
Jim Wagner
If you want to see a realistic knife fight, an intense hand-to-hand combat fight, and an on-the-edge-of-your-seat gun fight, then you will want to go see the movie The Kingdom staring Academy Award winner Jamie Foxx.
This movie is about terrorism in today's Saudi Arabia, “the kingdom,” and how an FBI investigative team gets caught in the middle of international politics and the deadly War on Terrorism. It also shows the fragile existence of the Saudi government, and how right wing Islamic elements in the kingdom are trying to take the royal family down and replace it with a more traditional version that is very anti-Western.
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The movie starts with a brief history of how the United States got involved with the Saudi Arabian government in the first place, which was done quite well. Then a very graphic small arms attack is launched on an American compound in Riyadh followed by a car bomb. Towards the end of the movie there is a kidnapping scene that is disturbingly realistic, much like the type we teach in our Terrorism Survival course. Of course, we also teach anti-kidnapping techniques as well. A female FBI agent, played by Jennifer Garner, ends up getting into a fight and is thrown around like a rag doll. Clearly she is no match for a blood thirsty male terrorist. Very few women can take on an aggressive male, especially a hardened criminal, and this movie shows the reality of such a fight. However, the character that Jennifer Garner plays has the "will to survive" and does some moves that any Reality-Based Personal Protection Women's Survival student would be proud of.
I highly recommend this movie, which is currently playing in theaters in North America, or rent the DVD when it comes out.
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Two new Reality-Based books
Jim Wagner
I now have two new books on the market – the German market. Book publisher Wieland Verlag has released two books that I have written. The first one, actually co-authored with knife designer Dietmar Pohl, is called Kampfmesser Messerkampf (Fighting Knife – Knife Fighting) and the second one is Messerkampf (Knife Fighting). The first one is a hard cover book and the second is a soft cover book. Both are high quality books with loads of color photographs and graphs.
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Kampfmesser Messerkampf, is one of the most detailed books ever printed on the subject of knives for conflict, and I am not just saying this because it is my book. Dietmar goes through the history of tactical knives, the various shapes and styles out there on today’s market, carry methods, and hundreds of technical details not covered in any other books. My portion of the book covers knife fighting from my Reality-Based Personal Protection system.
My second book Messerkampf goes into much more detail about the Jim Wagner Reality-Based Personal Protection Knife Survival system. The step-by-step photos are excellent and the layout easy to follow.
Unfortunately for the English speaking community these two books are only in the German language now, but the publisher is talking about getting them published in English.
In Germany the Reality-Based Personal Protection system is growing fast. This is not only due to my own knives on the market, the Jim Wagner Reality-Based Blade series, manufactured by German knife company Boker, but because of the many articles about me and the system in various German magazines. No doubt that these two new books from Wieland Verlag will increase enrolment in upcoming 2008 German seminars. In November, next month, I am returning back to Germany just to handle the overflow of this year – 60 students.
If you are in Europe you can order my two books directly from Boker in Solingen, since they distribute them.
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Messerkampf
Ein Messer ist eine extrem gefährliche Waffe. Wie man sich gegen einen Messer-Angriff verteidigt, und wie man selbst ein Messer zur Verteidigung einsetzen kann, wird in dem neuen Buch von Jim Wagner ausführlich dargestellt. Neben der Theorie und den einzelnen Techniken des Messerkampfs geht der amerikanische Nahkampfausbilder auch auf die psychologischen und physiologischen Aspekte ein. Er gibt eine präzise Anleitung dafür, wie das Messerkampf-Training aufgebaut sein muss. Alle Techniken und Trainingssequenzen sind mit großformatigen Fotos illustriert. Zahlreiche Beispiele aus Wagners langjährigen Erfahrung runden dieses umfassend bebilderte Buch ab. Der neue Titel aus dem Wieland Verlag ist eine Erweiterung des Messerkampf-Teils im Buch „Kampfmesser – Messerkampf“ von Dietmar Pohl und Jim Wagner. Der Text wurde ergänzt und überarbeitet, neue Bildteile hinzugefügt. Damit bietet sich die Neuerscheinung vor allem für Leser an, die nur am Thema Nahkampf interessiert sind, nicht jedoch an der Geschichte und Technik des Kampfmessers. Jim Wagner ist einer der bekanntesten Selbstverteidigungslehrer. Der ehemalige US-Polizeibeamte trainiert weltweit Polizei- und Militärangehörige, vor allem Spezialeinheiten wie die deutsche GSG-9. Sein realitätsbasiertes Überlebenstraining wurde für diesen Personenkreis entwickelt und hat sich tausendfach bewährt. Es eignet sich aber genauso gut für Zivilpersonen, die sich damit gegen Angriffe verteidigen können.
Preis: 24,80 EUR
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