The Training Scene

So I mentioned in the movies post, that once you've seen too many films, you begin to notice formulaic elements within films. For example, in rom coms, the guy and girl will get on well for the first half, then fight in the second, only to reunite at the end for a happy ending (500 Days of Summer being the only exception I can think of). But my favourite element of all the films I watch, that I love watching over and over again, are the training scenes. You'll mostly find them in action/adventure movies.

A couple of my faves:

Rocky

Self explanatory.

Kung Fu Panda

This is awesome because the teacher here knows that traditional methods aren't working. He almost gives up, but then he figures out how to properly connect to his pupil, and it works beautifully.

Avatar

You wouldn't think it was, but it is. Jake Scully needs to learn how to use his avatar, and he does. The sound of a girl laughing at his early attempts ringing in his ears is a unique kind of motivation…. it's a guy thing.

Iron Man

Not a training scene as such, but still an excellently made piece of cinematic art. It's done in parts - the making of the suit, and the testing of the suit. The test is the part I love - you could call it a "first flight" scene. He soars, he dives, he tries to break the altitude record for a plane, and nearly dies, only to save himself by a total reboot. The joy of the audience in seeing him take flight is then balanced perfectly by a comical moment at the end.

Karate Kid

"Wax on, wax off". In first making Daniel do manual housework does Mr. Miyagi strengthen the boys muscles, which are then trained through actual martial art training. The best, in my opinion, is when Daniel sees Mr. Miyagi execute a move which finishes in the crane position. Daniel consistently attempts this throughout the movie, and finally uses it properly to win the tournament.

X-Men: First Class

I won't ruin this for you, as most people haven't yet seen it, but when a young Charles Xavier helps his mutant brethren learn to control and master their powers, it is done in the most beautiful way… even in his youth we see the person who becomes the Professor, whose life calling becomes to help others master their powers, oftentimes helping them face their fears first.

And so on, and so forth. I could go on at length. But what I love is the message behind them. Dedication, focus, commitment…putting in the hours will eventually lead to mastery in any field.

Go for it. If your life was to be made into a movie, what part would be made into the training scene?