Customer Reviews

Modern Arnis By Remy Presas: Vol. 1

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is the first of 3 videos by Presas done in a seminar format on stage. I found the material quite useful and helpful but I am a long time practitioner of the Filipino arts as well as a karate and kung fu instructor, and I knew a lot of the material but not all. But for a beginner this might be too much too fast, so be aware of that. Presas's students file out from behind the curtain as he works various stick, empty-hand, joint locks and even ground grappling methods. Although famed for his stick skills, one must remember that Presas was a champion dumog or Filipino wrestling exponent in the old country before he came over here, and some of the those grappling methods get demonstrated here.

Besides showing many stick entries, especially to the number one feed, he also gives considerable attention to the upper twist lock, straight arm bar, several variations of gooseneck bent arm and wrist locks, and finger locks. His students also demonstrate this on stage. Also shown are the disarms for the different angles, sinawali or two stick drills, single stick technique, and also as I said quite a few ground pins and locks. Overall I thought it was a lot of information in fairly brief format, as he flows along at a fairly fast clip, so again, this might not be the best place to start for a beginner.

An earlier reviewer complained about Presas's "broken English." His English isn't that bad and his meaning usually comes through loud and clear. English was not even Presas's second language; it was his third since his tribe didn't speak the main common Filipino language of Tagalog, and he does all right considering that. Besides, this is not a comparative lit lecture on the merits of Melville or Tolstoy; it's a video on Filipino martial arts, so who cares if his English isn't impeccable?

I have to mention that I had the opportunity to do a square wu style tai chi chin na (joint locks and their reversals) demonstration with my teacher 20 years ago, which is an art rarely seen in the U.S. in pure form, and Presas said he was quite impressed with our demo. It was an honor to perform for Presas and the world lost a great martial artist and a selfless and dedicated instructor and man when he passed away all too soon a few years ago.

Remy Presas is indeed one of my favorite martial arts gurus on my personal all-time list. He is a man who embodies the term "Master". I was saddened to hear of his passing from brain cancer some years back as I always wanted to meet him and never got the chance although his family is carrying on their Arnis tradition and continuing his work.

Anyway, these videos make the art of Arnis, also known as Kali or Escrima, easy to understand. He has a way of making you very confident in your ability to learn his art. He has a very humble common-sense approach to training and you will quickly grasp the fundamentals. I love how he can show you one simple movement, then go endlessly showing how one technique if mastered, can be a handful in itself using it over and over until you start to think "imagine if I knew 10 of these principles" and hungry for more detail.

On a positive note, he does offer a more complete training set on his website along with his son's work. This DVD is a rite of passage for any new Arnis, Kali or Escrima student.

GM Remy Presas is one of the greatest martial artists ever. He's probably the best to ever pick up rattan. I've had the honor and privilege of crossing sticks with him. His Modern Arnis is very easy to learn and can compliment any martial arts. Thus earning its title as "the art within your art." It would also serve as a good primary art.

If you really want to learn stick fighting, and can't sign up for a class, this video is better then most I've seen.
I watched a lot of videos on stick, and most were a lot of garbage about forms, or bowing, folding your uniform, or techniques that would never work in a real world situation.
This set of videos is probably the most detailed I've seen. they go over techniques many times, and explain them fully, they even give variations on the defense. If English is your first language, and you don't have a problem with people's accents, you should have no trouble with his way of talking. If you're new to English, you may have some issue, but honestly, you can watch this video with the sound turned off, and still learn a LOT.
Remember, you're not going to become a black-belt by watching a 50 min video, so don't expect to get every technique from here.

Basically, if you want to learn, and can't get to a class, this is it.

This video was a big disappointment. I dropped $30 bucks for it but I thought Prof. Presas would start from the beginning and cover basic stances, basic strikes, blocks, parries, etc. Instead what I got was very bad audio where Prof. Presas quickly runs through a random series of disconnected techniques - many of which were not very basic.

It isn't even clear what type of audience he was aiming this at. Arnis students should know this stuff or they are in the process of learing it. Non-Arnis students don't have any idea what he is talking about it as he blurs through one random technique after another.

I have studied Shotokan, Tae Kwon Do and Aikido and I was looking to get into Arnis. This video was completely unhelpful in that respect. After watching an hour of this I am back to looking for videos on the internet which might contain more helpful info than this. I have searched for some time now and I just can't find an Arnis video which shows new students the basic techniques of this amazing art. Don't waste your money on this DVD.

I was hoping just to get the fundamentals. Unfortunately these are like random moves/techniques. And I truly believe only some moves I would call practical in a real situation. I mean no disrespect for any style. I am not an experience fighter, but I do think most holds are meant for opponents that are stunned, tired, in a clinch, or on the ground. I can't just pull off a hold with someone in shape and fast. Now I can see why MMA is very famous because it compiles from each martial art what works. I wish this video would of just shown me combos with the stick(s). Basic guard, basic attacks, and basic footwork. I kind of see why a pair of sticks would be deadly. I'm just wondering if Musashi Miyamoto had the same idea when he was using pair of blades to win all his duels.

I found this DVD marginally useful. Remy's technique is remarkable however his broken English and disjointed presentation did not make the DVD worth the price. If you took a portion and put it on a late night humor show it would be a reall success as he twists and turns his students joints while they twitch in pain.