Starring: Jackie Chan, Jaden Smith
Directed By: Harald Zwart
Run Time: 140 Minutes
Rating: PG
I am just going to start of the bat here and say that this is how the first Karate Kid should have been; the plot line was so much more realistic and made more sense. Dre Parker (Jaden Smith) is the new hero in this movie and is a 12 year old kid who is forced (in some respect) to move to China with his mother for her job. The plot is almost identical to the original movie, thus making this clearly a remake, but they tied up some loose ends that made the original film a little unrealistic. Dre is thrown into a culture and is the outcast, which makes more sense why he would get picked on. A child moving to a country where martial arts is a cultural aspect, and not how it was in the original Karate Kid, just some kid moving to California helped this movie be more believable. But the story was still the same, Mr. Han (Jakie Chan) is the mysterious maintenance man who is the kung fu master. Similar situations occur leading up to the main event which has same result as the original.
I want to go over some things I liked so much better about this movie. First, the introduction of Jackie Chan is brilliant. Although Miyagi will forever be a memorable character, the actor was not a martial arts expert. Jackie Chan as we all know is a master of many forms of kung fu. Secondly, they replace karate with Kung Fu. Karate in comparison to many martial arts is lame. Kung Fu, however, has so many forms, which makes more sense for this movie to introduce the young hero with a martial art that is worth learning. Thirdly, the movie had a better message then the others did. While it still had some negative messages, it also had a message that martial arts is about discipline and not about beating people up. Fourth, the new crane kick at the end was way cooler, and made more sense that the opponent could not block the kick. Unlike the original crane kick, it seemed so easy to block, and useless (which was blocked in both Part II and III). Watch this movie and you will see what I am talking about; that kick is possible as well.
Don't watch this movie expecting a fight sequence with Jackie Chan. They filmed an alternate ending with Mr. Han fighting the dojo leader, Master Li (Rongguang Yu) but it was ultimately cut from the script. I think it was a great call because it would have ruined the movie and all events leading up to the climax. In the original movie, Miyagi beat up five 18 year old kids, and it was kind of weird. In this movie, Mr. Han defends a beaten Dre against six twelve year olds, by using what they are doing against them. Mr. Han does not throw a punch, and it is just way better when showing that he is a master in kung fu. This is where the skill of Jackie Chan is seen in this movie, and can again be admired.
I will give this movie 4 out of 5 crane kicks. I want to give this movie 5 out of 5 because in all honesty, I really enjoyed this movie, and it sucked me in easier then the original Karate Kid. Plus, not having to listen to Ralph Macchio's voice made it so much more bearable. And you can not denounce the fact that Jackie Chan would be a hell of kung fu teacher to have. He really played his role well, and proving he is a great actor. The reason I am not giving it a perfect score is because well, not many movies deserve that perfect score. There is some things not good about this movie, but here is my final word: If you never have seen a Karate Kid movie, and are skeptical, watch this one at the very least. If you have seen all the Karate Kid movies, this one will at least fill up the void in your life that the other three created!
TMBro
There are some good references to the original movie for those of us who have seen the original, which give you that single "ha" moment that remakes are fond of including in their script. And yes, this is Will Smith's son.
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