The Karate Kid Review
This was probably one of my most anticipated movies of the summer, and to me it did not disappoint. Before I saw this movie I would classify myself as biased in favour of it, simply because it appeared to be a next Jackie Chan movie. However, upon actually viewing the film, I have to say that it holds up on its own, and it is decidedly not a Jackie Chan movie - more so a movie with Jackie Chan in it.
In this movie, Jaden Smith plays Dre Parker, a kid moving from Detroit, Michigan to Beijing, China. He quickly finds himself alienated in his new surroundings, where everything is different and few people speak his language. Fortunately for him, several of his schoolmates are more prolific in the english languages than his new neighbours - most notably a girl named Mei Ying. It's too bad for Dre that Mei Ying's admirer and close family friend is the school bully, Cheng. Cheng also happens to be the prized pupil of the Fighting Dragons kung fu school, a local club that teaches its students "No Weakness, No Pain, No Mercy" as it's motto. Dre spends the next few weeks trying to avoid Cheng and his cronies after an altercation that left him flat on his ass. He succeeds for a while until he sees an opportunity too golden to miss - flinging a bucket of sewage water onto Cheng and co. Dre then flees for his life, but is seemingly caught in a dead end. It looks like no way out for Dre, until Mr. Han (Jackie Chan), the maintenance man for Dre's building, steps in and shows Cheng a little bit about Kung Fu. Soon thereafter, Dre makes a deal with the Sifu of the Fighting Dragons that his pupils must leave Dre alone if he agrees to participate in the open Kung Fu tournament. They accept, and the rest of the movie is dedicated to Dre's training and participation in the tournament.
I have to say that I loved this movie for several reasons. For one, it takes the action out of typical Hollywood or New York, to an entirely new locale that is rarely if ever visited by Hollywood movies. The scenery and architecture of Beijing is so completely different from anything in America that you have to stop and take a second to fully admire the surroundings that you find yourself in. With its use of sweeping cinematography, this movie shows you what an ancient and beautiful place China really is. I don't know why it took Hollywood to make me realize that my homeland kicks quite a lot of ass - figuratively and literally.
Speaking of kicking ass, another reason I love this movie is Jackie Chan's role in this film. As I said before, this is no JC movie although Jackie is the lead bill. Gone are the hallmarks of JC films - rapid fire kung fu mixed with slapstick comedy and the use of unconventional items as weapons. Instead, Jackie takes a backseat in the action aspect of this movie and indeed, only fights once in the entire 2 hour and 20 minute duration of the film. Jackie focuses more on his acting in this film, and his portrayal of a haunted, lonely man with a bright past and a bleak present really tugs at your heartstrings. I think this is a very appropriate step for the man, because as we can see from his past few films (Rush Hour 3, The Spy Next Door) Jackie is getting a bit old for the stunt game. That's not to say that he's lost his touch - from the few minutes he's in action, he shows us that he still knows a thing or two about Kung Fu.
Another reason to love this movie is the karate kid himself, Jaden Smith. There are moments in this movie in which Smith positively channels his father. However, that's not to say that Jaden Smith is a carbon copy of Will Smith. Jaden brings a lot to the screen, but most importantly brings his game. If you ever thought you knew about karate kids, forget what you know because Jaden Smith absolutely crushes Hilary Swank or Ralph Macchio. This kid can do full splits, and i'm certain will be kicking ass in any future films he does.
Another surprise in this movie is Wang Zhenwei, who plays Cheng, the bully. We don't expect children to display maliciousness or brutality, but Cheng dishes these out in spades. Despite having few lines and not the greatest of english, you can really see that Cheng is filled with loathing for Dre Parker, and wants nothing more to crush his skull. Furthermore, Zhenwei's kung fu skill is such that i'm certain he will have a career in hollywood - particularly if he sticks with JC. I hope they got each other's information.
This is a coming of age story that surpasses the rest that have come out in the last few years. You know those inspirational sports or dance movies (Never Back Down, Step Up, Coach Carter) that try to send a positive message about not giving up and winning when the odds are down. I've never felt that any of these movies are really genuine, because the stakes in them are always so material, like winning a dance competition and the chance to be in a music video. The Karate Kid is a much more genuine film, with a real purpose for its characters to push as hard as they can - as Dre tells Mr. Han, he is fighting so that he won't be afraid any more. And that too me, is a real message. None of this hokey "I'm dancing so I can be a a-list celebrity" bullshit. This story could be about a real kid going through real problems, and that is the reason I enjoy it so much.
I suppose I should touch on the fact that this movie is a so-called "remake". However, in my opinion, this is a remake as much as a tomato is a fruit. Besides sharing the same name as it's 1984 predecessor, the similarities between these two films are so non-existent that they're almost negligible. I would say in fact that the 2010 Karate Kid is a much better film, and has the power to stand alone even without it's namesake. If you love martial arts, Jackie Chan, China, or are even just looking for a change of pace from these formulaic hollywood pictures, go see this film for sure.
In this movie, Jaden Smith plays Dre Parker, a kid moving from Detroit, Michigan to Beijing, China. He quickly finds himself alienated in his new surroundings, where everything is different and few people speak his language. Fortunately for him, several of his schoolmates are more prolific in the english languages than his new neighbours - most notably a girl named Mei Ying. It's too bad for Dre that Mei Ying's admirer and close family friend is the school bully, Cheng. Cheng also happens to be the prized pupil of the Fighting Dragons kung fu school, a local club that teaches its students "No Weakness, No Pain, No Mercy" as it's motto. Dre spends the next few weeks trying to avoid Cheng and his cronies after an altercation that left him flat on his ass. He succeeds for a while until he sees an opportunity too golden to miss - flinging a bucket of sewage water onto Cheng and co. Dre then flees for his life, but is seemingly caught in a dead end. It looks like no way out for Dre, until Mr. Han (Jackie Chan), the maintenance man for Dre's building, steps in and shows Cheng a little bit about Kung Fu. Soon thereafter, Dre makes a deal with the Sifu of the Fighting Dragons that his pupils must leave Dre alone if he agrees to participate in the open Kung Fu tournament. They accept, and the rest of the movie is dedicated to Dre's training and participation in the tournament.
I have to say that I loved this movie for several reasons. For one, it takes the action out of typical Hollywood or New York, to an entirely new locale that is rarely if ever visited by Hollywood movies. The scenery and architecture of Beijing is so completely different from anything in America that you have to stop and take a second to fully admire the surroundings that you find yourself in. With its use of sweeping cinematography, this movie shows you what an ancient and beautiful place China really is. I don't know why it took Hollywood to make me realize that my homeland kicks quite a lot of ass - figuratively and literally.
Speaking of kicking ass, another reason I love this movie is Jackie Chan's role in this film. As I said before, this is no JC movie although Jackie is the lead bill. Gone are the hallmarks of JC films - rapid fire kung fu mixed with slapstick comedy and the use of unconventional items as weapons. Instead, Jackie takes a backseat in the action aspect of this movie and indeed, only fights once in the entire 2 hour and 20 minute duration of the film. Jackie focuses more on his acting in this film, and his portrayal of a haunted, lonely man with a bright past and a bleak present really tugs at your heartstrings. I think this is a very appropriate step for the man, because as we can see from his past few films (Rush Hour 3, The Spy Next Door) Jackie is getting a bit old for the stunt game. That's not to say that he's lost his touch - from the few minutes he's in action, he shows us that he still knows a thing or two about Kung Fu.
Another reason to love this movie is the karate kid himself, Jaden Smith. There are moments in this movie in which Smith positively channels his father. However, that's not to say that Jaden Smith is a carbon copy of Will Smith. Jaden brings a lot to the screen, but most importantly brings his game. If you ever thought you knew about karate kids, forget what you know because Jaden Smith absolutely crushes Hilary Swank or Ralph Macchio. This kid can do full splits, and i'm certain will be kicking ass in any future films he does.
Another surprise in this movie is Wang Zhenwei, who plays Cheng, the bully. We don't expect children to display maliciousness or brutality, but Cheng dishes these out in spades. Despite having few lines and not the greatest of english, you can really see that Cheng is filled with loathing for Dre Parker, and wants nothing more to crush his skull. Furthermore, Zhenwei's kung fu skill is such that i'm certain he will have a career in hollywood - particularly if he sticks with JC. I hope they got each other's information.
This is a coming of age story that surpasses the rest that have come out in the last few years. You know those inspirational sports or dance movies (Never Back Down, Step Up, Coach Carter) that try to send a positive message about not giving up and winning when the odds are down. I've never felt that any of these movies are really genuine, because the stakes in them are always so material, like winning a dance competition and the chance to be in a music video. The Karate Kid is a much more genuine film, with a real purpose for its characters to push as hard as they can - as Dre tells Mr. Han, he is fighting so that he won't be afraid any more. And that too me, is a real message. None of this hokey "I'm dancing so I can be a a-list celebrity" bullshit. This story could be about a real kid going through real problems, and that is the reason I enjoy it so much.
I suppose I should touch on the fact that this movie is a so-called "remake". However, in my opinion, this is a remake as much as a tomato is a fruit. Besides sharing the same name as it's 1984 predecessor, the similarities between these two films are so non-existent that they're almost negligible. I would say in fact that the 2010 Karate Kid is a much better film, and has the power to stand alone even without it's namesake. If you love martial arts, Jackie Chan, China, or are even just looking for a change of pace from these formulaic hollywood pictures, go see this film for sure.
No comments:
Post a Comment