The Karate Kid Movie Review

Written on June 14, 2010 by Marc Eastman in Movies

When someone comes up with the idea to remake a movie from the forties or fifties, the first analysis of the theory is to question why, and really how, the film was popular in the first place. What, for instance, about the culture of the time was a necessary component leading to that popularity? The tricky part of an update is managing to get new audiences to have the same sort of experience as the original audiences, as opposed to the experience they would have by simply watching the original.

When we switch our focus to the eighties, the only question seems to be whether or not the thing was actually popular. At that point a eery, booming voice says, “Next!” and here we are.

The Karate Kid, like it’s retro-weekend counterpart The A Team, fails to realize that part of what made the originals work was that they were a bit stupid. Perhaps more true of The A-Team, whose “no one ever gets hurt” snub at censors became such a goofy gag that “A-Team-like violence” is a phrase with meaning, but The Karate Kid was also a special combination of time and talent that doesn’t really lend itself to update.

Whether it’s Valley Girl, or The Bowery Bombshell, that world and that audience just aren’t out there anymore. “Karate bullies” didn’t even make sense in the eighties, but it was a John Hughes kind of world, and it was a movie era in which such things were passed over.

In order to adjust, we move down to a victim who is twelve, Dre (Jaden Smith), and move to China. China, because we have to somehow avoid the idea that the film ought to be called “Mom Catfight,” or “Educational Institution Lawsuit.”

Oddly enough, the film’s attempt at translating itself out of the era connection that made the first film work isn’t at all bad. The move to China (and twelve-year-olds) gets us out of having to wonder about a modern day California High School. Some plausibility front opens itself. We even tone down the “wax on/wax off” signature work, and instead visit Kung Fu masters in their natural habitat. But, the transitioning of so much of the original film comes at a cost.

The story remains so much the same that isn’t worth describing, even to the extent that a great many scenes are almost exact copies. The trouble is that the best things about the film are the ways in which it leaves off remaking, and the aspects that are remake become rather odd in the translation. The nutjob martial arts instructor telling his students about his “No Mercy” policy made for a workable villain in the original, because you could practically see him twirling his mustache. When the same mentality is aimed at little kids, something rather unsettling is going on. There’s something “goofy villain” about the general idea, and the fairly serious presentation, that is really hard to mesh with fifth-graders.

Something about trying to fit the themes together, to this degree, doesn’t travel well all the way from High School movie that gets to show off cute girls and some karate moves to telling a little tot to break someone’s leg. You can remake Pretty in Pink if you want to, but if you’re going to make it about those just hitting puberty the party scene where they’re all drunk and staking out beds is going to be weird.

Still, it’s a decent enough adventure, though Jaden Smith really can’t pull it off. Jackie Chan does a fine job as a replacement for Pat Morita, even if no one could really live up to that role. Lowering the age of our key role also lowers the age of the audience, and those in the right demographic will probably enjoy it immensely. It’s fun, and has some sharp moments, despite the 140 minute runtime dragging you down, and it’s certainly a worthy enough piece of family entertainment.

It’s just a shame that both more and less weren’t done with the opportunity. As a representative example, the film is smart enough to know that we can’t stick with the “Crane technique” (even The Karate Kid II knew enough to dump that), and it comes up with a really nice replacement with an interesting lead, but when it comes down to the final play it turns it into something even more ludicrous. All the “Real Kung Fu” talk, and apparently it all comes down to something so ridiculous it can only be done with CGI.

Rating: