Better than the original, and when was the last time you read that?!
THE PLOT
A young Will Smith, sorry Jaden Smith, leaves Detroit to start a new life with his mother. But this is not as simple as a move to California. This is Beijing, China, and life couldn’t be more different.
Essentially this film covers all the same ground as the 80’s original. There’s a girl; there’s a guy that doesn’t like our young hero fraternising with the girl; that guy, and his mates, are well trained martial artists; there’s also an old, Yoda-like, maintenance guy that helps the youngster train in the martial arts to ‘unexpectedly’ win the day. It’s all there, and if you don’t know the plot you are clearly a cinematic hermit and this is not for you. This is not the review you’re looking for. You can go about your business. Move along.
THE REVIEW
Remakes will always be compared to their predecessors, but unlike watching Ralph Macchio in the title role, I didn’t want to be the kid that beats seven shades of shit out of the ‘kid’! This kid has some proper acting chops. Jaden Smith is definitely his father’s son and that’s no ‘nasty’ thing considering some of the characters Will has brought to the silver screen. Nor was Pat Morita’s Miyagi (R.I.P) missed as Jackie Chan delivered a great performance as Jaden’s mentor/master.
The expected homage’s and references were everywhere but almost always handled delicately so as to not make the audience roll their eyes. This reinvention of the classic original was better in almost every way. The cinematography was superior (even with the occasional jerky hand held motion) and the pace was steady. Having recently watched the original on TV it is evident that the thing that sets these versions apart is the quality of the acting. This comes in two parts; the acting in the 1984 original is poor by modern cinematic standards and the acting in the 2010 remake is simply very good.
There is only one niggle. The title! Set in China, Jaden’s character Dre Parker is trained in Kung Fu, not Japanese Karate! Surely ‘The Kung Fu Kid’?!
THE VERDICT
The Karate Kid (2010) is one of the best 80’s remakes in some time and more than that, it's flat out entertaining.
Essentially this film covers all the same ground as the 80’s original. There’s a girl; there’s a guy that doesn’t like our young hero fraternising with the girl; that guy, and his mates, are well trained martial artists; there’s also an old, Yoda-like, maintenance guy that helps the youngster train in the martial arts to ‘unexpectedly’ win the day. It’s all there, and if you don’t know the plot you are clearly a cinematic hermit and this is not for you. This is not the review you’re looking for. You can go about your business. Move along.
THE REVIEW
Remakes will always be compared to their predecessors, but unlike watching Ralph Macchio in the title role, I didn’t want to be the kid that beats seven shades of shit out of the ‘kid’! This kid has some proper acting chops. Jaden Smith is definitely his father’s son and that’s no ‘nasty’ thing considering some of the characters Will has brought to the silver screen. Nor was Pat Morita’s Miyagi (R.I.P) missed as Jackie Chan delivered a great performance as Jaden’s mentor/master.
The expected homage’s and references were everywhere but almost always handled delicately so as to not make the audience roll their eyes. This reinvention of the classic original was better in almost every way. The cinematography was superior (even with the occasional jerky hand held motion) and the pace was steady. Having recently watched the original on TV it is evident that the thing that sets these versions apart is the quality of the acting. This comes in two parts; the acting in the 1984 original is poor by modern cinematic standards and the acting in the 2010 remake is simply very good.
There is only one niggle. The title! Set in China, Jaden’s character Dre Parker is trained in Kung Fu, not Japanese Karate! Surely ‘The Kung Fu Kid’?!
THE VERDICT
The Karate Kid (2010) is one of the best 80’s remakes in some time and more than that, it's flat out entertaining.
TC
NOW SEE THE TRAILER...
UK Release Date: 28 July 2010
NOW SEE THE TRAILER...
Good review Tim. Slight concern - '(even with the occasional jerky hand held motion)'. I've told you before Timothy, ok for when watching a dvd at home, but not in public.
ReplyDeleteNick
It was dark and I hoped no one was looking!
ReplyDeleteThat said, they sure as fuck weren't concentrating on the film!! :)