Company: ESPY-TV
Tape Name: Escrima, Cadena De Mano
Tape Cost: $29.95
Length
of Tape/Time: 40 minutes
Number of Moves/Techniques: Concept Tape
Return Policy:
Return On Defective Or Damaged Merchandise Only
Experiences in dealing with this
company: Excellent
The Instructor: Rene Latosa
Company's Address: 611 Broadway,
N.Y., N.Y., 10012
Company's Phone Number: 212-673-0899
Web Page: http://www.espytv.com
E-Mail: order@espytv.com
Primary Grading Criteria:
1. Production/Tape
Quality: 9
2. Instructors demonstrated skill level: 9
3. Comprehension Score/Immediate
Understanding: 9
4. Degree to which this will make someone a better Martial Artist:
9
5. Score on delivery vs hype: 9
6. Degree to which we would recommend this
product: 9
7. Wasted Time ( The higher the number, the less " fluff"
/repetition ): 9
8. Playback Score/Watching if over-and-over again: 9
9. Would
I purchase more of this company's products:9
10. Overall grade based on cost vs.
Value: 9
Grand Total: 90% ( Fair = 2.5 Stars ) Original Grade = 93%
Secondary Grading Criteria:
1. Beginners
benefit: Fair
2 Intermediate benefit: Fair
3. Advanced benefit: Fair
4.
Time to benefit: Immediate
5. The need to buy additional tapes to understand this
one: None
Written Summary:
This is a video on
the filipino martial arts that attempts to address the connection between stick fighting
and empty hand fighting. Mr. Latosa deals with topics such as distancing, power development,
and focus development as well as attempting to communicate to the viewer that stick
fighting and empty hand fighting are really one and the same. For all the martial
artists out there who have said something like " I won't be carrying any sticks
with me when I get in a fight so why should I study the Filipino martial arts ",
then this video is worth a look. Mr. Latosa even touches on such esoteric subjects
such as the empty hand application of the abaniko (fanning the stick) and twirling.
There is a lot of material on this video but the material is taught in a
conceptual way and is not a technique video. Mr. Latosa is of the opinion that the
techniques happen only after you master the concepts of escrima. If you have had
difficulty in the past with wondering how training with sticks would improve your
fighting skills, then this video could help you to bridge that gap.
Mr Latosa’s
presentation is somewhat unenthusiastic and monotonous. Although the content presented
is good, I felt the presentation of the material could have been scripted in a more
logical fashion. It is difficult enough for a beginner to make the connection between
sticks and empty hand fighting as it is, let alone to understand what is going on
when the material is organized in a somewhat haphazard fashion. I feel there are
better tapes on the market that address the connection between filipino sticks and
empty hand fighting.
CJ
