Minor spoiler about the story: the story structure of this film is pretty closely modeled after the original.
That said, it still is a pretty fun film with some touching moments and laughs along the way. The story is well told, the tone is very consistent and the performances were believable. And the martial arts action in itself was pretty outstanding. Of course, what did you expect? Jackie Chan is in it.
To tell you the truth I am a die-hard fan of the original movies (okay, the first two movies. Never saw the third one... but I think I'm okay with saying that) and when I heard about the original being remade two thoughts occurred to me:
1.) WHY? (as in "Why on G-d's green earth would anyone want to remake such a fantastic film that still stands up even today?") I was to say the least, a bit "annoyed." I probably even stamped my feet but I was definitely pretty upset with this idea.
2.) IF IT IS TAKING PLACE IN CHINA WHY "THE KARATE KID" AND NOT "THE KUNG-FU KID" Okay, this question was and still is a mystery to me, but after seeing how closely this film takes after the original one I figured, "Okay, I can live with the same title. It's not Karate, it's Kung-Fu and Jaden Smith is NOT Ralph Macchio. But it sort of makes sense to not call it "THE KUNG-FU KID" because it's rather unapologetic (it honestly does not need to apologize IMHO) about the fact that it is a remake.
If you love the original movie you will probably actually appreciate how well this remake flows. Most of the same plot points are there and it does not take any weird turns in the story to make itself distinct from the original. It simply is a "Karate Kid" remake. Period.
As far as Kung-Fu goes in this film, did I say it was outstanding? (I think I did, but let's say it again.) The kids (both Jaden Smith, the Chinese kid is his nemesis are pretty tough.) I would not want to mess with those kids in a dark alley... ha ha ha. Yes, I'm safe here on my computer so my chicken-like nature can be expressed. ;)
But anyway the martial arts do make the original sort of pale by comparison. And that is a good thing. The movie benefits from it. It's not the same ol' Jackie Chan routine which we have seen him so many times before in other movies... waitaminute. Maybe it is... but it's still pretty outstanding.
And Chan's portrayal as Mr. Han is rather awesome. You feel for the guy and as I have probably seen a ridiculous number of Jackie Chan movies over the years I think I can say I think this is one of his best performances.
When the original movie came out kids across the US were inspired to take up martial arts -- probably Karate. I am suspecting that this movie will do (surprise surprise) the same thing for kung-fu.
Over all I give this an 8 out of 10. I reserve 9's and 10's for films that are pretty epic in scope and which I have probably watched a few dozen times. So an 8's a good indication that this is a solid, fun movie. I hope you go see it with an open mind.
If you are a fan of the original movies you will probably enjoy it as much as I did. Sort of a walk down memory lane with some nice thoughtful surprises. If you are new to The Karate Kid, just be prepared to put aside some allowance (if you are young) because you will probably want to start saving up for some kung-fu lessons after the movie.
That said, it still is a pretty fun film with some touching moments and laughs along the way. The story is well told, the tone is very consistent and the performances were believable. And the martial arts action in itself was pretty outstanding. Of course, what did you expect? Jackie Chan is in it.
To tell you the truth I am a die-hard fan of the original movies (okay, the first two movies. Never saw the third one... but I think I'm okay with saying that) and when I heard about the original being remade two thoughts occurred to me:
1.) WHY? (as in "Why on G-d's green earth would anyone want to remake such a fantastic film that still stands up even today?") I was to say the least, a bit "annoyed." I probably even stamped my feet but I was definitely pretty upset with this idea.
2.) IF IT IS TAKING PLACE IN CHINA WHY "THE KARATE KID" AND NOT "THE KUNG-FU KID" Okay, this question was and still is a mystery to me, but after seeing how closely this film takes after the original one I figured, "Okay, I can live with the same title. It's not Karate, it's Kung-Fu and Jaden Smith is NOT Ralph Macchio. But it sort of makes sense to not call it "THE KUNG-FU KID" because it's rather unapologetic (it honestly does not need to apologize IMHO) about the fact that it is a remake.
If you love the original movie you will probably actually appreciate how well this remake flows. Most of the same plot points are there and it does not take any weird turns in the story to make itself distinct from the original. It simply is a "Karate Kid" remake. Period.
As far as Kung-Fu goes in this film, did I say it was outstanding? (I think I did, but let's say it again.) The kids (both Jaden Smith, the Chinese kid is his nemesis are pretty tough.) I would not want to mess with those kids in a dark alley... ha ha ha. Yes, I'm safe here on my computer so my chicken-like nature can be expressed. ;)
But anyway the martial arts do make the original sort of pale by comparison. And that is a good thing. The movie benefits from it. It's not the same ol' Jackie Chan routine which we have seen him so many times before in other movies... waitaminute. Maybe it is... but it's still pretty outstanding.
And Chan's portrayal as Mr. Han is rather awesome. You feel for the guy and as I have probably seen a ridiculous number of Jackie Chan movies over the years I think I can say I think this is one of his best performances.
When the original movie came out kids across the US were inspired to take up martial arts -- probably Karate. I am suspecting that this movie will do (surprise surprise) the same thing for kung-fu.
Over all I give this an 8 out of 10. I reserve 9's and 10's for films that are pretty epic in scope and which I have probably watched a few dozen times. So an 8's a good indication that this is a solid, fun movie. I hope you go see it with an open mind.
If you are a fan of the original movies you will probably enjoy it as much as I did. Sort of a walk down memory lane with some nice thoughtful surprises. If you are new to The Karate Kid, just be prepared to put aside some allowance (if you are young) because you will probably want to start saving up for some kung-fu lessons after the movie.