Movie Reviews: "The Karate Kid" - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

JamesG · 06-11-2010, 09:56 PM

Movie Reviews: The Karate Kid

If you’ve never seen the original Karate Kid — and if you’re among the under-30s who make up the primary movie audience, you probably haven’t — then you’ll probably enjoy the remake, which stars Jackie Chan and Jaden Smith, the son of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett, most critics agree.

Betsy Sharkey in the Los Angeles Times remarks: “The Karate Kid is a kung fu kick of a film that hits more than it misses, with its fresh prince of Beijing in Jaden Smith, its scene-stealing grand master flash, Jackie Chan, and a shiny-happy China travelogue thrown in for good measure, or tax incentives, one of the two.”

And as Roger Ebert observes in the Chicago Sun-Times, “Here is a lovely and well-made film that stands on its own feet. The Chinese locations add visual interest, there are scenes of splendor in mountains and on the Great Wall, and the characters are once again engaging.”

In fact, A.O. Scott in the New York Times says that the new location is the most welcome change provided by the remake. “It has an unexotic, lived-in sense of place unusual in current Hollywood movies,” he writes.

“But it should have been better, with … a sense of cultural curiosity to match the eager geographical exploration.”

Likewise Claudia Puig in USA Today observes, “The film takes advantage of its exotic setting and places [the two principal characters] in some stunning locations, including the dramatic Wudang Mountains and at the Great Wall.

In the New York Post, critic Kyle Smith’s conservative bent comes into play as he notes in his lede that the movie “is about as likely to grab your youngster’s attention as any other propaganda film made by the Chinese government.” (The film is a Hollywood-Chinese co-production.)

He notes that the film shows Beijing without its notorious smog.

And Peter Howell in the Toronto Star faults the film for its “crass tourism.” The historic sites, he writes, are “nice to see but leave the story feeling punch-drunk.”

That’s not exactly a flaw, writes Liam Lacey in the Toronto Globe and Mail. “Your kids can enjoy some culturally instructive scenery between the flying head kicks.”

-IMDB News

isiahthomas · 06-12-2010, 11:38 AM

I'm gonna pass on this one. I don't even wanna see it when it comes to video LOL. I saw the first 3 Karate Kid's and i saw the 4th one with Hillary Swank. That's enough Karate Kid's for me LOL. I wonder what Ralph Macchio is doing now. He hasn't been acting for a long time.

isiahthomas · 06-12-2010, 11:43 AM

I felt so bad for Ralph in the first Karate Kid because everybody can relate to being picked on by bullies for no reason when you're a good person. I remember the scene in the first one when he was riding his bike on a hill and them bullies came by on some motorcycles and ran him off the hill and he fell down the hill. That scene was so awful and i felt bad for him. He was lucky he didn't get seriously hurt in that scene. He went home to his mom and complained about how he hated living in California because nobody at school likes him and he wanted to move back to New Jersey. I can relate to that because i hated living in Maryland when i moved there from Cleveland when i was a teenager because i used to get always picked on by ignorant black boys for no reason. I was lucky i didn't get into any fights. If i would've stayed in Cleveland, my situation at school could've been worse because the public schools in the black neighborhoods are terrible and the black boys are always bullying the quiet boys.

JamesG · 06-12-2010, 06:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by isiahthomas

I'm gonna pass on this one. I don't even wanna see it when it comes to video LOL. I saw the first 3 Karate Kid's and i saw the 4th one with Hillary Swank. That's enough Karate Kid's for me LOL. I wonder what Ralph Macchio is doing now. He hasn't been acting for a long time.

I saw the original series too. Jackie Chan is the main reason why I'm interested in the remake.

Ralph Macchio's most recent work was a brief stint on the show "Ugly Betty".

comedyfreak · 06-15-2010, 08:44 AM

They really should have renamed the movie cause they did Kung Fu not Karate plus the film is set in China. This movie I'd like to see though.

06-11-2010, 09:56 PM	#1
JamesG Freakshow Moderator Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 01, 2008 Location: Brooklyn, NY Posts: 57,136	Movie Reviews: "The Karate Kid" Movie Reviews: The Karate Kid If you’ve never seen the original Karate Kid — and if you’re among the under-30s who make up the primary movie audience, you probably haven’t — then you’ll probably enjoy the remake, which stars Jackie Chan and Jaden Smith, the son of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett, most critics agree. Betsy Sharkey in the Los Angeles Times remarks: “The Karate Kid is a kung fu kick of a film that hits more than it misses, with its fresh prince of Beijing in Jaden Smith, its scene-stealing grand master flash, Jackie Chan, and a shiny-happy China travelogue thrown in for good measure, or tax incentives, one of the two.” And as Roger Ebert observes in the Chicago Sun-Times, “Here is a lovely and well-made film that stands on its own feet. The Chinese locations add visual interest, there are scenes of splendor in mountains and on the Great Wall, and the characters are once again engaging.” In fact, A.O. Scott in the New York Times says that the new location is the most welcome change provided by the remake. “It has an unexotic, lived-in sense of place unusual in current Hollywood movies,” he writes. “But it should have been better, with … a sense of cultural curiosity to match the eager geographical exploration.” Likewise Claudia Puig in USA Today observes, “The film takes advantage of its exotic setting and places [the two principal characters] in some stunning locations, including the dramatic Wudang Mountains and at the Great Wall. In the New York Post, critic Kyle Smith’s conservative bent comes into play as he notes in his lede that the movie “is about as likely to grab your youngster’s attention as any other propaganda film made by the Chinese government.” (The film is a Hollywood-Chinese co-production.) He notes that the film shows Beijing without its notorious smog. And Peter Howell in the Toronto Star faults the film for its “crass tourism.” The historic sites, he writes, are “nice to see but leave the story feeling punch-drunk.” That’s not exactly a flaw, writes Liam Lacey in the Toronto Globe and Mail. “Your kids can enjoy some culturally instructive scenery between the flying head kicks.” -IMDB News

06-15-2010, 08:44 AM	#5
comedyfreak Cheers! Forum Fanatic Join Date: Dec 14, 2005 Location: Sunny California Posts: 11,060	They really should have renamed the movie cause they did Kung Fu not Karate plus the film is set in China. This movie I'd like to see though.
	__________________ www.facebook.com/comedyfreak

06-12-2010, 11:38 AM	#2
isiahthomas Member Forum Fanatic Join Date: Aug 20, 2002 Location: Cleveland, Ohio Posts: 10,704	I'm gonna pass on this one. I don't even wanna see it when it comes to video LOL. I saw the first 3 Karate Kid's and i saw the 4th one with Hillary Swank. That's enough Karate Kid's for me LOL. I wonder what Ralph Macchio is doing now. He hasn't been acting for a long time.

06-12-2010, 11:43 AM	#3
isiahthomas Member Forum Fanatic Join Date: Aug 20, 2002 Location: Cleveland, Ohio Posts: 10,704	I felt so bad for Ralph in the first Karate Kid because everybody can relate to being picked on by bullies for no reason when you're a good person. I remember the scene in the first one when he was riding his bike on a hill and them bullies came by on some motorcycles and ran him off the hill and he fell down the hill. That scene was so awful and i felt bad for him. He was lucky he didn't get seriously hurt in that scene. He went home to his mom and complained about how he hated living in California because nobody at school likes him and he wanted to move back to New Jersey. I can relate to that because i hated living in Maryland when i moved there from Cleveland when i was a teenager because i used to get always picked on by ignorant black boys for no reason. I was lucky i didn't get into any fights. If i would've stayed in Cleveland, my situation at school could've been worse because the public schools in the black neighborhoods are terrible and the black boys are always bullying the quiet boys.