'Karate Kid' kicks into entertainment overdrive
Dre (Jaden Smith), left, gets a tour of China from Master Han (Jackie Chan).
The Karate Kid
Running time: 140 minutes
MPAA rating: PG (bullying, martial arts action violence and some mild profanity)
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"Wax on, wax off" morphs into "Jacket on, jacket off" in the successfully re-imagined "Karate Kid."
With all due respect to the late Pat Morita, who, as mentor Mr. Miyagi was nominated for an Academy Award in 1985, this redux has more entertainment kick than the original.
The new, 21st century "Karate Kid" may lack just a little in the master role featuring kung fu legend Jackie Chan. It soars in others areas, though. Sorry, Ralph Macchio, but Jaden Smith doesn't just go through the motions of a bullied kid-in-training to take on his tormentor in a martial arts tournament.
If case you missed Jaden on screen with his superstar dad Will Smith in the emotional drama "The Pursuit of Happyness" in 2006 or in the doomsday drama "The Day the Earth Stood Still" in 2008, know this. Jaden Smith can act.
That's what makes the familiar, yet sufficiently reshaped story enjoyable for parents. And despite a laborious running time of well over two hours, the new version, set primarily in China, has a stand-up-and-cheer finish for "Karate Kid" newbies; its target audience.
"The Karate Kid" retains the tone (somber) and theme (surrogate father/son bonding) of the 1980s franchise. Thanks to a generally effective script by first timer Christopher Murphey, the basic idea is jump-kicked to a higher emotional level.
There's no need for director Harald Zwart ("The Pink Panther 2" remake) to explain the fact that popular Detroit kid Dre Parker (Smith) has no father figure in his life. Just before single mother Sherry Parker (Oscar nominee of Taraji P. Henson) and reluctant son take a cab to the airport and board a flight to Beijing, Dre takes one last look at the pencil mark on the door frame noting the day his father died.
Dre lands on his feet in a strange foreign land. Before the jet lag has even subsided, the dread-locked kid from the U.S. has caught the eye of a young violinist in the park. Meiying (Wenwen Han) is obviously intrigued by this animated stranger. In movies like this, however, the bully has already claimed the girl.
Dre takes several beatings from advanced kung fu student Cheng (Zhenwei Wang), who shows no mercy in combat. Finally, the aging apartment handyman, Mr. Han (Jackie Chan), steps in as protector. Han turns out to be a secret kung fu master (with serious emotional baggage). Once mentor and student hook up, the "Karate Kid" tale begins to glide along the track to a well-orchestrated ultimate showdown.
From this aisle seat, the secret weapon guiding this adventure to success is Jaden's dad Will, who, along with wife Jada Pinkett Smith, draws producer credit. Will Smith is one of the sharpest minds in Hollywood. Jaden, working exceptionally well opposite Chan, Han (the girl) and Wang (the bully), is amazingly prepared for the final reel fight scenes, as well as the comic and emotional training sessions that come before.
Chan, a master of acting as well as kung fu, injects the expected comic moments without overshadowing his dramatic scenes.
My only complaint about this well-crafted remake is that two hours and 20 minutes is too long to ask young kids to sit still for a drawn-out yarn, even if it does have a rousing finish.
With all due respect to the late Pat Morita, who, as mentor Mr. Miyagi was nominated for an Academy Award in 1985, this redux has more entertainment kick than the original.
The new, 21st century "Karate Kid" may lack just a little in the master role featuring kung fu legend Jackie Chan. It soars in others areas, though. Sorry, Ralph Macchio, but Jaden Smith doesn't just go through the motions of a bullied kid-in-training to take on his tormentor in a martial arts tournament.
If case you missed Jaden on screen with his superstar dad Will Smith in the emotional drama "The Pursuit of Happyness" in 2006 or in the doomsday drama "The Day the Earth Stood Still" in 2008, know this. Jaden Smith can act.
That's what makes the familiar, yet sufficiently reshaped story enjoyable for parents. And despite a laborious running time of well over two hours, the new version, set primarily in China, has a stand-up-and-cheer finish for "Karate Kid" newbies; its target audience.
"The Karate Kid" retains the tone (somber) and theme (surrogate father/son bonding) of the 1980s franchise. Thanks to a generally effective script by first timer Christopher Murphey, the basic idea is jump-kicked to a higher emotional level.
There's no need for director Harald Zwart ("The Pink Panther 2" remake) to explain the fact that popular Detroit kid Dre Parker (Smith) has no father figure in his life. Just before single mother Sherry Parker (Oscar nominee of Taraji P. Henson) and reluctant son take a cab to the airport and board a flight to Beijing, Dre takes one last look at the pencil mark on the door frame noting the day his father died.
Dre lands on his feet in a strange foreign land. Before the jet lag has even subsided, the dread-locked kid from the U.S. has caught the eye of a young violinist in the park. Meiying (Wenwen Han) is obviously intrigued by this animated stranger. In movies like this, however, the bully has already claimed the girl.
Dre takes several beatings from advanced kung fu student Cheng (Zhenwei Wang), who shows no mercy in combat. Finally, the aging apartment handyman, Mr. Han (Jackie Chan), steps in as protector. Han turns out to be a secret kung fu master (with serious emotional baggage). Once mentor and student hook up, the "Karate Kid" tale begins to glide along the track to a well-orchestrated ultimate showdown.
From this aisle seat, the secret weapon guiding this adventure to success is Jaden's dad Will, who, along with wife Jada Pinkett Smith, draws producer credit. Will Smith is one of the sharpest minds in Hollywood. Jaden, working exceptionally well opposite Chan, Han (the girl) and Wang (the bully), is amazingly prepared for the final reel fight scenes, as well as the comic and emotional training sessions that come before.
Chan, a master of acting as well as kung fu, injects the expected comic moments without overshadowing his dramatic scenes.
My only complaint about this well-crafted remake is that two hours and 20 minutes is too long to ask young kids to sit still for a drawn-out yarn, even if it does have a rousing finish.
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