Short Film Review: ‘Gaku’- One Last Round’ A Fight Far Beyond the Ring.

In ‘Gaku: One Last Round‘, director Taige Shi invites us into the bruised and battered life of Gaku Takahashi, a professional Japanese boxer training in Los Angeles whose dreams were derailed by an act of hate. 

The film focuses on a man whose discipline, talent, and quiet resolve earned him a place in the fiercely competitive boxing scene in LA. But everything changed in June 2020, in the thick of a pandemic and the social unrest it amplified. Gaku was rear-ended on a Los Angeles freeway. What should have been a routine fender-bender escalated into a nightmare. The other driver, fuelled by racist hate attacked and assaulted Gaku on the side of the road. It was a violent, unprovoked act that clearly left more than physical wounds.

The documentary captures him several years later, still dealing with the aftermath of that particular incident. He is still struggling with the trauma and trying to rebuild his life. The film uses an observational technique with the lenses and framing, focusing on Goku, its subject. With this, it captures in very good detail a man who has his spirit is dampened. There’s a lingering sadness in Gaku’s eyes, a hesitancy in his voice. There is also some strength and resolve that might be subtle, but certainly in there. But the attack left him broken, so much so that doctors said he couldn’t fight professionally ever again. For a man with so many prospects and the potential to have a tremendous career, this can have been hard to deal with, as it would be for anyone.

The most powerful sequence in the film shows Gaku driving past the scene of the incident. You don’t need narration to understand what’s happening. The silence says it all. His body tightens, his gaze stiffens, and his breathing shifts. You can almost see it as he relives the trauma.

As much as this is a recovery story, it also feels like a story about doubt, identity, and the quiet battles minorities often fight when seeking justice in America. Even now, Gaku wrestles with whether it’s worth continuing the legal fight. He reveals that he is just a foreigner who can barely speak English properly and is unsure if the authorities will even believe him or be willing to help him. You can imagine how frustrating this can feel for anyone who is going up against a system that isn’t always receptive to minorities.

There’s a moment in the film that perfectly captures this tension. We see Gaku going over documents and trying to get to speak to the right authorities over the phone. His frustration is very vivid here, he tries to understand what to do next to get some justice for himself.

Despite everything, Gaku is still fighting. Maybe not yet in the ring, but certainly within himself. He holds onto the hope that he can still become a world champion someday and he plans to still try to make a life for himself in America.

The beauty of this documentary lies in its quiet honesty. It doesn’t try to dramatise Gaku’s pain. It doesn’t need to. And even with how modestly it approaches everything, Gaku‘s story is a powerful one. He is more than a victim or a boxer looking for another fight. He becomes a symbol of resilience, a reminder of how deeply injustice can cut, and how hard it can be to heal from something you didn’t deserve. And this is truly a story about pain, injustice, and the weight of fighting for more than just titles.

I will score it 4 out of 5 stars.