When I first heard of this remake, I got concerned. Not because I have these romantic notions that the original is this amazing movie that should not be touched, but because I thought it was a weird choice for Jaden Smith's first starring role. The kid did well in his first two movies- The Pursuit of Happyness and The Day the Earth Stood Still- but to pin his starring hopes on a remake no one really wanted seemed like a dangerous proposition for the budding star. I think often we, as movie fans, decide the movies we grew up loving are better than they really are. The Karate Kid is a cool movie, but no remake is going to ruin my childhood, nor do I think The Karate Kid was this experience that should not be messed with. In fact, karate movies should come back. I want another Three Ninjas and Surf Ninjas as well. I know we are in an age of street fighting/Mixed Martial Arts, but the Martial Arts are a fascinating study of control and ass kicking and why shouldn't we have more movies balancing the two? Plus the first time I saw the trailer, I thought that 12 or 13 year old Kyle would be all over it!
For somewhat unspecified work related issues Sherry and Dre Parker(Taraji P. Henson and Jaden Smith respectively) are moving to China. Dre's father is dead and he is not a bad kid, just hardened. His first day in China he meets a friend, a girl and an enemy. It was a big first day! At school his enemy tortures him, and eventually Dre just starts hiding. He wants to learn martial arts, but the big martial arts school is where the bully learned all of his tricks. After a serious confrontation with 6 bullies, Mr. Han(Jackie Chan) agrees to teach Dre Kung-Fu in order for Dre to compete in a Kung-Fu tournament and get these bullies off of Dre's back. Dre is an attentive student, but he rarely sees the point of the discipline minded activities Han gives him, like making him take off, pick up and hang up his jacket thousands of times. To Mr. Han "Everything is Kung-Fu." The young Dre's attention is not fully on Kung-Fu as he starts a romance with an adorable little Chinese girl, but she is a violinist and as their budding romance takes her away from her practicing she is forbidden to see Dre. Will this underdog be able to win the tournament? Will Mr. Han find redemption in this young kid? Who knows?!?!?!
Jaden Smith will be a star for decades to come if he plays his cards right. He has this amazing pedigree, yes, but he also has instincts. he carries the heft of this overly long movie and he is up to the challenge. He is quietly charming, the way his father, Will, is outwardly charming. The young Smith finds that not saying something is, at times, the right way to act. He spends a lot of time quietly contemplating Dre's next move or anticipating Han's next move. He is a talented kid and he very much impressed me in this movie. He also seems to be void of vanity and as a young actor, that is priceless. He had absolutely no reason to play a character who gets beat up over and over again and is forced to cry and scream about hating his life and Jaden allows us to fully understand how hopeless the kid feels. He is not afraid to let his Dre very much hide from danger without making Dre feel too weak. We never call Dre names because we understand because Jaden makes us understand with his face.
The movie is surprisingly good, too. The beginning has a nice mix of action and humor, with Jaden getting a chance to show just how charming he can be, but the very first time we see Jaden get beat up is brutal. I mean the movie is hard hitting in the action. We see, hear and feel every hit, kick and every time Jaden hits the pavement. I actually flinched in a PG movie a few times. This has to be on the verge of PG13, that is how brutal the action is for a family film. It was nearly shocking how brutal it is. Jackie Chan does very little fighting, but he has slid into the mentor role nicely. He wears it the way his Mr. Han wears a rundown baseball cap, presumably to hide himself from his shame. His Han lacks the usual Jackie Chan joy, which made Han much more believable. As Chan is less able to do all of his crazy stunts with age, I much prefer him in this type of role to the crazy goofy kid comedies he is doing. Henson does not have much to do but be the overly worried, overly sassy mother, but she is a talented actress and fills the role well.
At the running time reaching nearly 2 and a half hours, The Karate Kid is just too bloated. Much of the romantic side plot could have been cut and perhaps 1 of the training montages could have been trimmed a bit. By the time we get to the tournament, the movie starts to try the patience of the audience. Now, the tournament is very cool. Again, the action is more brutal than I would have guessed and the nods to the tournament in the original are nice, if a little pandering and there is never a question as to what is going to happen, but I went with it. I knew the ending was coming and it still got me all into it. I wanted to see what was going to happen, even though I could have drawn exactly what was going to happen. Also, there is a whole lot of obnoxious shaky camera that does not serve much of a point. Not everyone needs to use it just because they can.
When it comes to underdog stories, the climax is never the defining feature. There are only two ways for it to go, either the underdog wins, or he loses but learns something valuable and gains the respect of the favorite. it is what the movie does before it gets there that makes a movie, and The Karate Kid offers enough good stuff to make it worth it. The emotional climax with Chan and the young Mr. Smith hits the right notes and shows range for Chan, but it also shows that Jaden knows what he is doing on screen. These are two actors and characters that require the other to reach the goal. They need each other, whereas it seems like Dre needs Han. So, besides a bloated midsection, I was pleasantly surprised by The Karate Kid. The world is in Jaden's hands and I am excited to see the kind of actor he will become, because he really has all the tools to do a lot of very strong work.
Final Grade: B+
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