Review

Review Date: 13-June-10
Spoiler Rating: Medium
Juju Judgment: Juicy

The Karate Kid (2010)

Like a rotund puppy or homemade mac 'n' cheese, The Karate Kid provides reliable, warm, familiar satisfaction. Its story would be comfortably predictable even without three previous "Karate Kid" movies because it speaks to everyone's inner child, the one that feels frightened and powerless, and encourages that child to hope for triumph. The newest "kid" is 12-year-old Dre Parker (Jaden Smith), who moves with his widowed mother (Taraji P. Henson) to Beijing. Though a long way from home, Dre is a bright, outgoing boy who ventures into his new neighborhood within minutes of his arrival and makes two important acquaintances. One is a pretty girl who shares goo-goo eyes with him (Wen Wen Han); the other is a nasty little bully who promptly flattens him (Zhenwei Wang). Both attend Dre's school so he continues to be smitten and terrorized by them, respectively. One day while getting beaten up again, Dre is saved from serious injury by Mr. Han, the taciturn, unsmiling handyman from his apartment building (Jackie Chan). Reluctantly, Mr. Han agrees to train Dre in kung fu so that he can meet his enemy in public competition and defeat him both physically and psychologically. In preparing for hand-to-hand combat with the bully, Dre seeks to establish himself as a person uncontrolled by fear and worthy of respect (and pretty girls), i.e., the adult that all of us would like to be.

While I might have expected the payoff that such an underdog/coming-of-age story delivers, I did not expect The Karate Kid to feel as accomplished as it does (the incongruous title notwithstanding). Director Harald Zwart, bless him, sees no reason why a kids' flick based on an old chestnut should not possess the beauty, detail, and patient delivery of an art house film. He accords Dre's tale the respect that Dre works to earn. On top of that, the production is enhanced by having Smith in the lead. Not only is he an astonishingly beautiful child, he is quite a fine actor, equally at ease with comic flourishes, demanding action sequences, corny romance, and full-blown drama. (He can apparently cry on demand, a talent employed for Dre's darker moments and a slightly over-the-top scene when he learns his mentor's tragic secret.) You would need to be warped not to root for a small boy in a strange land who can't get a break from the locals, but when he is played by Jaden Smith you cleave to him all the more.

Recognizing that the idea of an evil child is warped in itself, the stirring finale makes it clear that Dre's rival was nearly (but not irrevocably!) corrupted by his own kung fu teacher, a sick adult who uses children to vent his cruel hatred (Yu Rongguang). Like most of the plot, this comes directly from the original Karate Kid movie, and it remains a nice touch. Learning, healing, connecting, displaying courage: this is all good, and a good way for both kids and adults to feel inspired.

Copyright © 2010 The Jujube (M. I. Kim). All rights reserved.