Final Heat

Final Heat is a low budget film about a struggling fitness gym called The Hollywood Box.

Husband and wife, Cam (Brad Benedict) and Laney (Molly Cerne) believe that the only way to keep the gym open. Is to win a fitness competition where the winners go on a reality television show. It could be the only way for the gym to survive, through publicity.

They manage to get a team together to take part, only some drop out as they are not getting paid to take part. It leaves a bedraggled bunch left with Cam also having to compete.

So far this is very much an underdog story. The film then swerves into something else.

Cam is disturbed, he could not get over the death of his drug addict brother who was in the army. A close friend, Kemp could not look out for his brother. Now Kemp cannot see that Cam is also falling apart.

The melodrama is framed like a reality television show and is a clash of styles. It is jarring and does not work. It could had been a better movie if they kept it as a group of people trying to win a fitness competition.

I watched this so you don't have to. Seriously. There's nothing to see here, unless guys with their shirts off in the gym is your thing.

What you get here is basically an extended Tik Tok of a bunch of guys with ZERO charisma showing off their work-out routine, with an almost non-existent "plot" and no budget at all. Mostly awful acting on top of that, and there's really not much more to say.

(Oh, and if you somehow thought there'd be some female T&A to at least halfway mitigate the awfulness? Nah, there's none. The female lead is very charming and attractive, and there's a couple of decent looking glorified extras, but there's sadly very little to counter all the charmless guys incessantly showing off their pumping iron. )

From its corny dialogue to its shaky cam work, the movie struggles to find its footing and ultimately falls flat.

One of the first things that stands out is the cringe-worthy dialogue. At one point, a character in an audition video says, "I'm a three-time X Games champion," only for the guy watching to respond with , "Oh yeah, I know her she's a triple X Games champion." This kind of forced and unnatural dialogue is a recurring issue throughout the film, making it hard to take any of the characters seriously.

The story itself is riddled with flaws, failing to engage the viewer on any meaningful level. A particularly bizarre moment involves a character named Kemp sending a creepy video where he suddenly turns to the camera and gives a wave. Despite this unsettling introduction, the main characters-husband and wife-decide to give someone who wronged them in the past a second chance, seemingly based on this odd video alone. Kemp's disdain for the couple is palpable from the moment he arrives to the gym but they put up with his antics unclear to us why. The backstory is gradually revealed, but by the time it all comes together, you're likely to not care.

Technically, it's a mess. The sound quality is poor, plagued by an annoying static that gives you a headache. The lighting is equally problematic. The entire production has the feel of something shot on an iPhone.

The acting is another major downfall. The performances lack depth and authenticity, making it impossible to connect with the characters on any level. Even when the film tries to explore the reasons behind the characters' odd behaviors, the lack of emotional depth leaves you feeling disconnected.

In the end, the film tries to be deep but misses the mark entirely. With a flawed story, terrible acting, and technical issues that distract more than they enhance, it's a movie that's easy to skip. Despite its attempts at psychological complexity, there's no real substance here.