There’s something surprising and refreshing about Harold Zwart’s ‘Karate Kid’ remake. Something I didn’t really expect. Despite the fact the title character is several years younger than Daniel from the original, and he’s learning kung-fu, not karate, this new film isn’t just a faithful remake, it’s an overall improvement on the first film. Yea, I know. I just put a target on my head as far as most children of the 80’s are concerned.

Here’s the thing, though. Despite Pat Morita’s sweet and endearing performance, and the appeal of the overall story, John G. Avidsen’s 1984 version is a rather clunky film. Macchio is never completely convincing as a harried youth who goes martial arts warrior by the end. His chemistry with Morita is there, but there’s almost none of it when it comes to his relationship with Elisabeth Shue. Martin Kove’s villain is about as obvious as they come, and the movie is painting everything in extremely broad strokes.

Yes, I still find it effective overall. It’s hard not to when you have such an appealing hook and the emotional thrust of Miyagi, the handyman who isn’t just teaching Daniel-san how to fight, but how to live and stand on his own. So, it makes sense when the new version grabs Avidsen’s structure and the central relationship between martial arts master and young boy, and refines it into a story that has all of the emotional beats of the original, but seriously streamlines the cheese.

Jaden Smith is Dre Parker, a kid from Chicago who moves with his mom (Taraji P. Henson) to China where he becomes the target of bullies who terrorize him with martial arts. Making Dre a good bit younger than Macchio in the first picture seems like a strange choice, but it actually ups the impact of the fight scenes instead of diminishing them. Here, when Smith is getting his butt kicked, it looks like it legitimately hurts, and because of his size, Smith has a harder job of making us believe that Dre would ever be capable of fighting back at all. Here, he gives Dre a simple and earnest desire to grow-up and away from the things he can’t control, and I thought his pluck was convincing.

Enter Mr. Han, the rumpled maintenance man who teaches Dre the art of kung-fu, and ultimately how to stand up for himself and those things he believes in. Again, the script has made its job more difficult, because with Dre so young, there’s the issue that he hasn’t exactly discovered what it is he’s fighting for, outside of not taking another beating. In this, way Chan’s Han has an even harder job than Morita’s Miyagi; he’s got to make the relationship convincing enough that we would buy a motivation for Han training a kid this young.

To Jackie’s credit, he nails the role and I personally found his character even more compelling and poignant than Miyagi, although that’s no slight on Morita (who was nominated for an Oscar in 84 for the performance). In truth, it’s a very different approach to the character. Han isn’t a wise old man who is content in what he knows and where he is. There’s sadness and brokenness to his character that actually resonates despite the rather predictable way the screenplay handles it. Chan is a lovable performer, but usually in American films he’s relegated to behaving dopey because that’s what audiences expect from him. He reigns in his charisma and his versatility and replaces them with uncertainty and vulnerability, until of course, the kung-fu comes out. In many ways, just as the original film was Morita’s show, the bulk of this one works because of Jackie and I think it’s easily the best dramatic work he’s  done. His chemistry with Smith is strong, and he really sells the back story that the writers have saddled him with. He takes what would be contrivance and makes it work in his favor.

The kung-fu itself is really one of the film’s improvements over the original. All of it looks plausible, and there’s an immediacy and impact to the tournaments that you can feel in your guts. Chan’s style and form, as always, are flawless, but he’s practicing restraint and performance in his technique, and when he’s fighting a gaggle of 13 year olds, it’s not as odd as it would seem to watch him take them down.

The decision to move the film to China is also a good one and it’s probably the best way this new film distinguishes itself from its predecessor. The cinematography is excellent, and there’s a travelogue feel too much of the imagery and footage. This is just a superficial glance at China the country, but thematically it adds a grander sensibility to the movie’s story of renewal and dedication. The technical credits are outstanding, and the seams here are few.

If Karate Kid has a flaw that keeps me from being completely enthusiastic about it, it would be the film’s refusal to pair itself down to a manageable length. This movie clocks in at around 2 and a half hours, and even though very little of it is boring –by the time we reach the tournament we don’t care so much—there’s some obvious sag in the middle sections and in the tacked on relationship between Dre and Meiying. In an effort to cover all their bases, the filmmakers may have packed the film too full, and it loses just a tad of the lithe simplicity of the original.

At the end of the day though, Karate Kid delivers both entertaining thrills and emotional wallop, and its likely to inspire younger audience members to pursue the martial arts. Very rarely can it be said that a remake turns out to be worth the time and effort poured into it. Karate Kid is that welcome exception to the rule.

Rating: ★★★★☆ 

Atomic Popcorn has the great pleasure in bringing you The Karate Kid, starring Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan. The upcoming remake is making a large rumble from those who have already seen this film. Please set aside some time on June 9th at 7pm to join us for this remake that is sure to please.

Synopsis:

In Columbia Pictures’ The Karate Kid, 12-year-old Dre Parker (Jaden Smith) could’ve been the most popular kid in Detroit, but his mother’s (Taraji P. Henson) latest career move has landed him in China. Dre immediately falls for his classmate Mei Ying – and the feeling is mutual – but cultural differences make such a friendship impossible. Even worse, Dre’s feelings make an enemy of the class bully, Cheng. In the land of kung fu, Dre knows only a little karate, and Cheng puts “the karate kid” on the floor with ease. With no friends in a strange land, Dre has nowhere to turn but maintenance man Mr. Han (Jackie Chan), who is secretly a master of kung fu. As Han teaches Dre that kung fu is not about punches and parries, but maturity and calm, Dre realizes that facing down the bullies will be the fight of his life.

Trailer:

Check out the film’s trailer at http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/thekaratekid/.

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Y’know, I actually think this could have potential.

The kid is a bit younger, and Jackie Chan, God bless him, is certainly not the lovable old man Pat Morita was. I personally think it might scratch the same itch for this generation that the old one did for ours. But the 80′s were an odd time, and the first film was about far more than just learning to fight off bullies.

This one is all about the execution of it; capturing that relationship between the teacher and the student with honest emotion. That’s something not even the original franchise managed to replicate after the first.

Right now, it looks promising, although I’m getting a bit tired of seeing Jaden Smith lined up for every film propriety requiring a child under 13. Chan’s gruffer, more bum-like take on Miyagi could be interesting if the filmmakers develop it.

I guess we will know shortly. See the trailer for yourself below:

I would like to start out by saying I had no idea going into this movie what it was about besides Jack Black and Angelina Jolie were attached to it as voice actors. I knew nothing of the storyline, the characters, besides it had Kung Fu in it. With that being said, the movie was fantastic!

Po (Jack Black) is a very fat and one lazy noodle serving panda. He dreams day in and day out about becoming a Kung Fu master. Funny as he is a rather large Panda. He lives above his father’s noodle store (whom is a duck) and is a huge fan of the Furious Five. The Furious Five are China’s most well known Kung Fu students and students of the great Master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman). The Five consists of Tigress (Angelina Jolie), Monkey (Jackie Chan), Crane (David Cross), Viper (Lucy Liu) and Mantis (Seth Rogan). (Look at those names people, I had no idea that this film was so large in terms of names!) The time has come, after a vision from Oogway, that a Dragon Warrior must be chosen. All the towns folk are there. And our lowly friend Po, is asked to serve up noodles by his father. Po is devastated as he wanted to be front and center to see the Furious Five and the one who would be come the Dragon Warrior.

You will have to see the film for yourself to see whats next, but I must say its a “must see” experience.

The digital animation was superb to say the least. The trees all the way to the burnt fur on Po’s face was done in marvelous detail. Pixar you better watch out, Dreamworks is coming for you. Honestly one of, if not the best looking animated films I have seen.

With the above animation, the film brings along a great storyline that actually touches your heart a little. Its like Kung Fu for kids. Kids everywhere will flock to see this as they should. It’s full of laughs, action and a great underlying story. Family’s don’t hesitate to bring your children to this one. Adults don’t mistake my last comment for a reason not to see it, as this 31 year old absolutely loved it along with some of the older guys who sat next to me.

From the start of the film to the end, this movie really does a great job at bringing high quality animation and storyline together. Something that has been missing lately in the world of animation. Movies like Shrek with the jokes and one liners that if were to be watched today wouldn’t be funny as we have forgotten the times past. This movie has jokes that will last with each viewing!

Make sure you go see this movie, its a sure win and really a great film overall.

[imdb]0441773[/imdb]

Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆ 

Let’s see. I’m not a big mathematical person, but I think I have this flick figured out. Okay. The Karate Kid + Neverending Story + Last Action Hero = The Forbidden Kingdom. And that’s not really a bad thing.

Going by the ads for this movie, you’d think this was a movie about Jet Li and Jackie Chan teaming up to save the world from the bad guys. Which it was. But the ads are also anglo-saxon free, and the movie is certainly not. The movie is getting a US-wide release, so of course we need a white character to make the film accessible, as well as very few subtitles. Now, going into the theater, I was almost totally clueless as to the film’s plot, which is usually my plan. (Frank Costanza: “I like to go in fresh!”) At the very least, the less I know about the film’s plot, the less I can get attached to the perfect plot in my head, and the chance of disappointment shrinks.

Now, anyway, our token white character is played by the awkward kid from Sky High, Michael Angarano, who’s managed to sprout chest hair. Despite his chest hair, we’re asked to believe his character, Jason, is a kung fu-obsessed kid. Despite the fact nobody under 30 watches kung fu, Jason spends all his time thinking/eating/breathing/pooping kung fu. Anyway, there are bullies (of course there are bullies) who push Jason into helping them rob the store where Jason buys all his kung fu movies. During the robbery, the store’s old shopkeeper is shot by the bullies, and Jason runs away, taking with him an old staff the old man kept. As the bullies chase Jason to the rooftop, our hero is magically(?) swept off the roof, and blacks out.

When he wakes up, Jason is in ancient China (the mystical part, with gods and people who can float in the air). There he meets a drunken master played by Jackie Chan, who fills him in on the magical backstory of the staff Jason’s found. The staff, apparently, belonged to the Monkey King (who looks like a really furry guy, not a monkey), who was defeated in battle via trickery by the evil Jade Warlord. Anyway, prophecy needs to be fulfilled, world needs to be saved, and you get the general idea. And the journey begins, etc., and they meet a young assassin girl, and a monk played by Jet Li. The RPG system is alive! Jet Li and Chan, of course, train Jason in kung fu, with a training montage, of course. And they go out to fight the bad guys and save the world, and I assume there’s a moral lesson in there somewhere.

I’ll stop here and let you figure out the rest of the movie for yourself. Only a jerk would give it away for free.

Now, as for the movie itself, it sounds paint-by-numbers, and it sounds goofy, and it even sounds a little deceitful when the commercials don’t even mention time travel or the appearance of Caucasians. And, yeah, it feels like a amalgamation of Last Action Hero, Neverending Story, and Karate Kid. But it makes those things work. It’s actually a pretty fun little kung fu movie, despite the inclusion of high wires, and despite the weak but necessary typical bully scenes. It’s certainly the prettiest ‘fu movie I’ve seen in a while, and it nicely pays homage to all the old movies. It definitely gets a thumbs up, and you’ll definitely enjoy it if you’re a kung fu fan, or just enjoy Jackie Chan and/or Jet Li.

Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆