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Jackie Chan stars in this remake of the 1984 hit movie. Dre Parker (Jaden Smith) and his mother, Sherry (Taraji P. Henson) move to China for her work and Dre has trouble adjusting to the new lifestyle and getting along with the local boys. He meets Mr. Han (Jackie Chan) who is the maintenance man at the apartments where he lives and after a couple of fights Mr. Han agrees to help Dre learn to defend himself and compete in the local Karate tournament. The movie follows pretty much along the lines of the original film where the young boy meets a girl and the girls relatives are all against their being together. There are some differences but they are minor to the plot. Jackie Chan gives a good performance in this film but there is (in my opinion) not enough of him fighting in this one. However since the movie is all about the boy, that is understandable. Jaden Smith, who also starred in The Pursuit of Happyness and The Day the Earth Stood Still gives another good performance and is showing that he can become a great actor. I would recommend this movie to anyone who enjoys a great coming of age movie or likes a good Karate action movie.Read full review
After Jaden Smith completed his role in The Pursuit of Happyness along side his mega-hit father Will Smith, it was assured that Jaden had the chops to join the family business. Jaden's mother is actress Jada Pinkett Smith (currently starring in TNT's "Hawthorne"). Both parents wanted their son's next major role to fit his abilities and they decided to produce an updated version of The Karate Kid, the smash teen hit in 1984. According to the Smith's, the vision of the film was not complete without securing Jackie Chan to play the role of the boy's mentor and trainer. The Karate Kid, known internationally as The Kung Fu Kid (and perhaps a better title for the film) was shot mostly in China. The plot is identical to the 1984 version: boy moves to strange new town, boy get's bullied, boy get's trained to fight by wise, older martial arts expert, boy seeks revenge and learns many lessons along the way. The Karate Kid, released this weekend , is indeed a film worth viewing even if you are especially fond of the original. It is difficult to remake a film that was as popular as The Karate Kid, but this film accomplishes the task and brings more sophistication to the story than the earlier film. Both of the film's stars do not disappoint. Jaden, believable as the new kid in a strange land, portrays vulnerability when needed and obviously trained for the fighting scenes. Jackie Chan is spot on as the kung fu master and it is a treat to see another side of the actor who normally plays in more comedic films. The Smiths secured an all access pass to China, including a look at the Forbidden City. The cinematography and the film's score were enjoyable and impressive for a film catering to younger viewers and it is nicely cast with Taraji P. Henson portraying the mother and Wenwen Han playing the boy's first love interest. The kung fu scenes are well done but may be too much for smaller children. All in all, this was the perfect movie to be released as school breaks for the summer. It's a film that the target audience will certainly enjoy and their parents will be taken back in time to their first "Karate Kid" memories and be glad that their children now have a film of their own. For more reviews by Kay Shackleton, see here: http://www.examiner.com/movie-awards-in-national/kay-shackletonRead full review
This movie takes what was done in the original movie and has nicely upgraded across the board. First, we have more of a threat from the kid doing the bullying this time around rather than a caricature. The mother/son dynamic is stronger and given much more screen time. The romance is more playful and innocent, with the friendship aspect ultimately being the plot focus. The student/teacher dynamic has an even stronger father/son underlying tone and finally, the action is much much improved upon. All of the above is due to excellent performances across the board. Jaden Smith shows to be a more than capable actor in the making and with no doubt observation of Chan, who we finally get to see in a dramatic role rather than action/comedy role. Smith and Chan have a fun chemistry that helps make the film enjoyable. I was afraid through the ads that Smith's abilities would be over the top great, but through an excellent training montage and philosophical lessons, we buy that this kid is as good as he is in the tournament. A standout moment for me was the final bonding scene between Chan and Smith. It is during a moment reminiscent of the original film's scene where Daniel finds out about Mr. Miagi's family. Here, we have a similar scene, but it is what happens after it that establishes their relationship and seals the audiences relationship to these two characters. Excellent excellent scene. The extended scenes of life in China really help to ground this film in the philosophical realm, even more so than the original. There is a richness and texture to everything that takes place against the backdrop of China. It has an even more "fish out of water" feel that lends to the believability and desperation of Smith's character. We also have a lot more character building time spent in this film that gives it about 13 more minutes run time than the original, but those extra moments really pay off in a big way. We get more of Dre and his mom. They don't just show up and then she gets thrown into a few scenes like in the original. She is an important part of Dre's life and it is shown. Those that have pre-judged this movie or gotten caught up in the name game really need to see the movie before they make any judgments. This movie is a very welcome surprise and more than holds it own against the original. It stays loyal to the lessons and relationships of the original movie and brings them forward 25 years later.Read full review
Jaden Smith, although just a kid, has amazing acting powers. I was convinced as I watched this movie, that I was being afforded a great privilege to see this boy's life as it unfolded, petal by petal, as he grew within and without. Jackie Chan was amazing. I've never seen him in a role this emotional, and tears rolled down my face to match his own during the scene when he reveals to "Dre" (Jaden's character) about the tragedy of his past and the reason he keeps a car in his house upon which he labors so intently each day of each year until the dreaded June 8th rolls around. The fighting scenes were no holds barred, and it was a marvel to see kids with moves I've never even seen adults pull off before. All in all, this was a wonderful film, well worth watching at any age, and chock full of everything that makes life the adventure it is. Take a chance on this one. You won't be disappointed.Read full review
I really enjoyed this movie. Jaden is a great actor - very comfortable in front of the screen. He and Wen Wen Han looked great together. She is a great actress and handles the English very well, even though she really doesn't speak it. The others were great as well. I think that the original Karate Kid was more of a relationship movie as I don't think any of them really knew Karate. However, the emotion and action were far better in this new one and Jackie Chan played the emotional "angry blind man" perfectly. As a result, the development of the relationship between Dre and Mr. Han was much more believable. I watched the original more because I am a sucker for a cute romance (actually, I had a crush on Elizabeth Shue). However, since the new movie played down the significance of the affections between Dre and MeiYing the relationship between he and Mr. Han were much more effective. They were great together. Their chemistry was much stronger. What can you say about the Kung Fu... What I liked was that it was all real. Jaden went through Jackie Chan's real brutal training for 7 months! Everything you saw with Jaden was real. He worked very hard and endured a lot of pain to get it right. I wonder what will happen in the 2nd movie. Too bad the supporting will probably not be in it.Read full review
