Put Your Jacket On....

The 1984 Karate Kid has become a cultural icon, and the story line has been used for million times. A kid, bullied, helped by an old guy happened to be karate expert, the kid learn to be tough, entered the tournament, fought his nemesis, and won it...It's like the fairy tales in a modern way, and for teenagers indeed. Back then, it is hard not to like the classic version, where it glorified courage, honor, and of course, getting a hot chick in the most stylish way, showing off the crane kick. Pat Morita, with his role as the notorious Mr. Miyagi, since then has been a iconic figure in Hollywood.

Now, the 2010 Karate Kid basically is using the same old recipe, but instead of karate, they change the setting into China, where the kid learns Kung-Fu. I still find it silly that the movie title was not changed into Kung Fu Kid, since the title and the whole story was totally irrelevant, but this is Hollywood, and I guess this is the way to attract the old 80's generation to watch it. The producers made a bold move to choose Jaden Smith (Will Smith's kid) as the new karate, ups...kung fu kid, not just because he's BLACK (believe me, commonly it's kinda hard for Hollywood to promote black people as an action figure), but also the new character will become much YOUNGER than Ralph Macchio. Another interesting cast selection was Jackie Chan as the kung fu master, since he has been very very poor on choosing the script in Hollywood these days. So, will the new Karate Kid will actually be that good for the new generation? Oh hell yeah...(believe, I didn't even see this coming).

Dre (Jaden Smith), is moving out to China with his mum (Taraji P. Henson). Apparently, cultural shock and a couple of jet lag has made things from bad to worst for Dre's first day in Beijing. His show off attitude toward a cute girl, Mei Ying (Wenwen Han) doesn't make Cheng happy, who happens to be very good in kung fu. Beaten up like a sack, Dre has just started his nightmarish days. Until one day, Mr. Han (Jackie Chan) an old mechanic guy, helps him out from being cornered by Cheng's group. Desperately, Dre begs Mr. Han to teach him not just to fight, but importantly, to defend himself. He declined at first, but after failing to make peace with Cheng's master, Han decides make Dre his apprentice, since the kid is challenged to join a kung fu tournament. From there, the story embarks not just on teaching martial arts, but also on how the mentor and the apprentice shares and learns about family and how to move on with life (halfway in the movie, Mr. Han will eventually share his sad story, a bit tear jerker actually). Afterwards, the movie will roll up until the climatic tournament fight...one thing for sure, no crane kick in the end....

Before I went to see this, I believe this must be the worst of summer movies. After How to Train Your Dragon, every movie which came out looked decent, or even worse, and I ended up miss some of them. What a relief to say that this one finally comes out to be different. The positive thing about this one is that The Karate Kid seems to detach itself from the original. Since this remake is so damn good, it feels like a stand-alone title. All the original components are still there, which we rarely see in the past few years.

The cast also gave an a good show, especially Jackie Chan, because I think this is the first time he acts according to his age (read: OLD). His character taps into true emotion and I got to see another side of Chris Tucker‘s Rush Hour sidekick. Jaden Smith still lives under his dad's big name, but by looking his preparation for this flick, I say he does a pretty good job (I mean, learning martial arts isn't supposed to be easy rite?). Some of the his lines were dreadful, some of the jokes were crispy, but for some scenes, he can also show the emotional side. Dre's love interest, played by Wenwen Han also steals some scenes with her cuteness, but still, seeing a black and Chinese kid get along each other (once again) is a brave portrayal by the director.

Another good thing about The Karate Kid is the China scenery, which is portrayed well on showing how Beijing looks like, and also the people activities. I just came back from China couple of weeks ago, and seeing the Beijing landmarks just made me think, "Man, I've been there !". So, for the common viewers, it is also a good chance to see what kind of a city Beijing is.

My only concern is the fighting scenes. The Karate Kid, in my opinion is quite a bit of violence for kids. All the hits and kicks received by the kids made me cringe...Dude, landing on concrete, hard blows to the limbs, and even harsher blows to the face, man...that will make you bleed and won't wake up easily....But then again, this is fictional, so these little actors are taking a licking and keep on ticking. Mums and Dads, be careful not to let your kids do those things at home.

Overall, 2010 Karate Kid is a very satisfying update of the original, a little slow in the middle but the ending has people standing up and clapping. As far as remakes go, it's not the best, but it's definitely a worthy effort and a fine display of Chan and Smith's skills, both as dramatic actors and action ones.

My Rating : 8/10