Some films whisper their message whilst others will land a punch to the gut. Gaku: One Last Round is a short documentary film directed by Taige Shi that stirs your emotions silently. It gracefully captures the moving story of Japanese boxer Gaku Takahashi as it explores his journey through pain, perseverance and his quest for justice.

In June of 2020, Gaku Takahashi was rear-ended on an LA freeway. What seemed like a simple traffic mishap spiralled into something far more traumatic and violent. The other driver arranged and filled with racial hate ended up attacking him. The boxer with huge prospects was left with not only career-threatening injuries but also emotional scars that haven’t healed with time.

The incident marked a cruel interruption to a life devoted to discipline and ambition. Gaku was a professional boxer who had moved to Los Angeles with hopes of becoming a world champion. But the doctors said he could not fight professionally again after the attack. In that incident, his career and his sense of self were adversely affected by an unwarranted act of senseless hate.

Taige Shi, through this documentary, captures Gaku Takahashi’s situation with some quiet intimacy. The visuals do not rely on flashy cuts or dramatic flair. Instead, they give us time to see the man who is stoic, wounded, and reflective. We watch as he revisits the scene of the attack. Sitting in his car, Gaku is visibly shaken as he holds back the emotions that are flooding in. When asked if he feels anything driving past that place, he simply says, “Kind of.” It’s a gentle, almost dismissive answer that says so much more than words.

There’s something deeply touching about how the film allows space for Gaku’s silences. His quiet hesitation, his halting English, his doubts and especially when he wonders aloud if he should still be fighting this, given that he’s “just a foreigner” who barely speaks English.

He talks about his fear that the authorities wouldn’t believe him. This captures what appears to be the truth of many minorities in a country where marginalised voices often go unheard. At this point, the film feels like a subtle but powerful call to action for some attention to be given to the barriers that minorities face trying to access the justice system. It is not just the attack that derailed his life, it’s the system that didn’t catch him when he fell. Even with his disappointment, he doesn’t regret coming to America. “This country gave me a chance,” he says, and you believe that he means it.

Yet, this is not a film about defeat. Gaku: One Last Round is about the slow, often lonely process of rekindling hope. The fire in Gaku’s spirit may have dimmed, but you can see that he is searching for that spark again. He is going through rehabilitation and training to be a champion again. In every frame you see of him, the spirit of a fighter and a dreamer is there.

Through Gaku’s story, Taige Shi invites us to reflect on what it means to have your future ripped away and what it often takes to fight for it back. This documentary isn’t just about this one boxer. It is about all the people who have been knocked down by life and are fighting just to be seen and heard.

Gaku: One Last Round’ is making its world premiere at the ‘2025 LA Asian Pacific Film Festival.

Rating: 4/5 Stars