Product Details

• Format: Color, NTSC
• Rated: Unrated
• Number of tapes: 2
• Studio: Paladin Press
• VHS Release Date: February 26, 2002
• Run Time: 195 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000063K5E
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #513,455 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Restraint and Control Strategies, April 15, 2002

By 

chris fletcher (Seattle, Wa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Restraint and Control Strategies: State-of-the-Art Defensive Tactics for Law Enforcement and Security Professionals [VHS] (VHS Tape)

When I first saw the price tag, I groaned inwardly; I was afraid that Paladin Press was going to start gouging its customers the way other companies do when it comes to books and videos on rare info. However, I was able to justify it like this: Paladin seems to charge according to value, and the videos of lesser quality have consequently lower price tags.

Well, I say that "R & C Strategies" fits into the Self-Offense" category: worth it. Let me tell you why.

The video set already assumes a base level of knowledge in police tactics like the armbar, centerlock, etc., but where it really shines is how Loren shows you how to take them and actually make them work. Not just with the kind of "ho-hum, we're in the dojo and you're being a good uke" sense," but in the "Here's a 300-lb crackhead who's been looking for a cop to eat ever since his parole from penitentiary" sense.

How to do the technique in an attack. As such, it is truly useful in comparison to other "joint-lock" videos you might've seen, where you just know that the way they're being done simply won't work. The real highlight was that he showed you how to transition into a cuffing position without giving up the pain from every technique, which is especially helpful. This
is all in tape 1.

Tape 2 builds on the knowledge already presented and shows you some basic principles on how to make alternate techniques work when the armbar, wrist twist, etc. gets [messed] up somehow. I wish he'd spent a little more time on those sections, but my favorite was the lengthy section on pressure point
control. I didn't know much about it, figuring it was that kind of mystical kung-fu stuff that Dillman made popular.

Loren Christensen prefaces the whole section by telling you why it might and why it might not work, and then proceeds to show where the points are.
They're definitely not things you'll find in a real violent struggle, but when you need to control someone, Loren's info is dead-on.

My partners and I tried 'em out, and some hurt like the dickens. Just imagine taking an ASP point behind the ear. Brr. I give Loren's uke credit for taking all that abuse. Loren also covers things like proper striking,hair grabs, and getting the subject into a good handcuffing position.

Lengthy review sections definitely helped to reinforce the material, as did the slow-motion photography and overhead camera angles. It's clear that they put a lot of work into the production, and it shows in every aspect.

I think Paladin wanted to produce a police tactics video that you could watch over and over again and get something new from each time, and they succeeded.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Instruction, June 7, 2002

By 

Alain B. Burrese "Author, Speaker, Mediator, ... (Missoula, MT) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Restraint and Control Strategies: State-of-the-Art Defensive Tactics for Law Enforcement and Security Professionals [VHS] (VHS Tape)

When you find someone with over thirty years of martial art training and law enforcement experience who can actually TEACH, you should run, walk, crawl to learn from him. Loren Christensen is such an individual, and if you cannot learn from him first hand, his new video set "Restraint and Control Strategies: State-of-the-Art Defensive Tactics for Law Enforcement and Security Professionals," is the next best thing.

In this two-video set, Christensen gives detailed explanation on the techniques and skills that are most effective for real street situations. Besides teaching the viewer how to perform techniques, Christensen explains the concepts behind the techniques and how a police officer, security personal, or just an individual needing to control or restrain someone in a street fight, can use them more effectively in real life encounters. Included in these control techniques on the first tape are the armbar, lower back wrist flex, police wrist flex, bent arm lock, bent arm wrist flex, shoulder lock takedown and the outside twist. Christensen teaches these and their variations from the minimum custody hold to applying them from an attack. Each section has a review segment to aid in actually learning these techniques to use yourself.

In tape two, Christensen gives further excellent instruction on principles that will help save you when things get ugly on the street. He covers principles such as the action-reaction principle; where the head goes, the body will follow; and the distraction principle. He goes into detail on how circles will aid in performing the techniques and generate more power to put a person on the ground. Christensen knows full well that sometimes a technique does not work in the street like planned, so he covers going from technique A to B when things are not working. Being able to change in mid-flow is a valuable skill, and the instruction on these tapes will help you develop your ability to handle these tough situations.

Besides the principles taught in the second tape, many more techniques are shown as well. Christensen covers hair techniques, pressure points, striking techniques, and prone subject techniques so you can control the subject after using one of the numerous takedowns described earlier. I especially enjoyed the fact that Christensen teaches in the tapes, and is more concerned with passing on solid information that will help other officers and individuals in real life encounters, than he is about impressing viewers with his own skills. These are tapes you will learn from, and if you practice what is being taught, your effectiveness and use of techniques will undoubtedly improve.

Even if you are familiar with some of the techniques taught on these tapes, Christensen's detailed instruction is sure to help make them more effective and painful. Whether you are in law enforcement or security, or a martial artist wanting to increase the effectiveness of your joint-locks, these videos are an invaluable addition to any self-defense video library.

Reviewed by Alain Burrese, J.D., author of the Lock On Joint Locking Essentials series.