The Karate Kid (2010)
Do not, not, NOT go in expecting the same movie as was already released in 1984. The core is the same, and many of the plot points are pretty close, but that is where the similarities end.
As mentioned, the core plot is the same. Kid is bullied by other kids who are learning martial arts from Evil Instructor. Kid meets Good Instructor who teaches him the basics of martial arts through mundane tasks. Once the basics have been learned, the kid becomes a master through a super fast training montage, much of which takes place in scenic areas and landmarks. Kid discovers Good Instructor's secret dark past. Kid wins tournament, wins respect of opponents, wins girl, high fives all around.
...that said, it is really very much worth seeing. The details and scenery are so different that it is extremely difficult to remember that you are, in fact, watching a remake of a 26 year old movie (god I feel old). The characters are very new and very well portrayed. Jackie Chan gets to strut his stuff once or twice, which is always extremely entertaining.
The panoramas in the training montages are absolutely breathtaking, and the action is very fast and very fun.
My only difficulty came in the end tournament. The movie followed the "switch between cameras every few seconds" paradigm that so many action and martial-arts movies have adopted. You know, so they can do the scene in several hundred tiny takes instead of a few long ones. Combine that with the general shakiness of the camera and you get a kind of motion-sickness action that can be difficult to follow.
Other than that, the only weaknesses in the movie were the same weaknesses in the original; that is, the fact that a young man becomes good enough at kung fu in a few months to defeat a whole team of others who have trained hard their whole lives. Some of the moves used are downright silly, too. Prepare to stretch your suspension of disbelief a bit.
All in all, a very good movie. Worth watching, even at today's movie prices (though I caught the matinee). It is very exciting, is very emotional at times, and is all around a great feel-good movie.
RATING: B+
As mentioned, the core plot is the same. Kid is bullied by other kids who are learning martial arts from Evil Instructor. Kid meets Good Instructor who teaches him the basics of martial arts through mundane tasks. Once the basics have been learned, the kid becomes a master through a super fast training montage, much of which takes place in scenic areas and landmarks. Kid discovers Good Instructor's secret dark past. Kid wins tournament, wins respect of opponents, wins girl, high fives all around.
...that said, it is really very much worth seeing. The details and scenery are so different that it is extremely difficult to remember that you are, in fact, watching a remake of a 26 year old movie (god I feel old). The characters are very new and very well portrayed. Jackie Chan gets to strut his stuff once or twice, which is always extremely entertaining.
The panoramas in the training montages are absolutely breathtaking, and the action is very fast and very fun.
My only difficulty came in the end tournament. The movie followed the "switch between cameras every few seconds" paradigm that so many action and martial-arts movies have adopted. You know, so they can do the scene in several hundred tiny takes instead of a few long ones. Combine that with the general shakiness of the camera and you get a kind of motion-sickness action that can be difficult to follow.
Other than that, the only weaknesses in the movie were the same weaknesses in the original; that is, the fact that a young man becomes good enough at kung fu in a few months to defeat a whole team of others who have trained hard their whole lives. Some of the moves used are downright silly, too. Prepare to stretch your suspension of disbelief a bit.
All in all, a very good movie. Worth watching, even at today's movie prices (though I caught the matinee). It is very exciting, is very emotional at times, and is all around a great feel-good movie.
RATING: B+