The Karate Kid

My Rating: 3.5/4





After the filmmaking revelation that was "The Karate Kid"(1984), I was feeling a little defensive when I heard about a remake. I thought the original was so good, there shouldn't be a remake out of respect for it. This one didn't look as good or well written. But I was completely proved wrong. Although the plot wasn't very original because it's pretty much structured(and I'm not even exaggerating) EXACTLY like the original. I'm talking down to every last event, with a couple new ones added in. So all in all, the plot is pretty basic. Boy moves far away, boys meets girl, bullies get jealous, bullies beat him up, kid is bullied by the bullies..a lot, boy finds out the maintenance man at his apartment complex knows kung-fu and so he begins to teach the boy, and boy must train to face his fears. The best way I can describe the change between the original and the new one is "better,faster,stronger". The action scenes especially are more fast-paced and, well, violent. The script is stronger, the acting is stronger, the action is faster, and the movie as a whole is just, well, better. The 2010 version of "The Karate Kid" is the most heart pounding, entertaining, moving experience I have had in a very long time. I was never bored, never did my attention wander to the boredom of counting sheep, never was I having anything less than an amazing experience. While I was hoping for this Karate Kid to be a little more original, it does seem kind of like they're making the exact same movie over again. But my definition of remake is that it has the same ideas and story but brings it's own originality. But, "The Karate Kid" did change some things and had a small amount of originality. And when you see that in action, it's very moving. But the names mainly are what changed. Instead of "Danny LaRusso", it's "Dre Parker". Instead of "Mr Miyagi", it's "Mr. Han". Instead of "Alli", it's "Mei Ying". Instead of "Johnny", it's "Cheng". As well as instead of moving to California, they move to Beijing, CHINA. So hopefully, to all the readers, that will get rid of the confusion with the foreign character names. So as you can see, I actually ended up enjoying the remake more than the original. Also, the action scenes are (like I said) more fast-paced. The fighting in the original seemed a little more realistic however, the kids in this are younger and somehow fight like Jet Li! From lightning fast punches to deadly kicks to acrobatic mayhem you will NOT be bored with these scenes. The acting is great. Will Smith's talent must have been carried through his genes and into Jaden. Because after watching this film, there is no doubt acting is in his blood! Both him and Chan deliver excellent performances making a movie about something as common as karate into a unique and moving movie about karate. Moments containing such a thing are what true movies are all about. They can be an influence on society, and give a classic that the whole world falls in love with at the same time, And it's things like that that are part of what we live for. It is difficult to put this element into a film, but "The Karate Kid" is a textbook example of how to do so. Whether you liked the original or not, you will stand up and cheer for "The Karate Kid".

Starring: Jaden Smith Director: Harold Zwart
Jackie Chan
Taraj P. Henson