Prickly Goo

The Karate Kid (2010)

There’s a scene in “There’s Something About Mary” where Matt Dillon’s scumbag detective character Pat is trying to impress Cameron Diaz’s titular Mary. They are discussing films and he says “I just miss the classics, y’know, like ‘The Karate Kid’ or ‘Harold and Maude.’” This is probably supposed to be a joke at his expense; that he is so low-brow that he considers those films cinematic classics. Well, low-brow or not, I think the original “Karate Kid’ is a classic, and has long been one of my favorite films. In fact, for me, it contains my favorite single scene in film history; at the very climax when a seemingly defeated and brutally injured Daniel attempts one last strike at the karate tournament. To the amazement of everyone, he poses in a peculiar stance. His opponent and the crowd are confused, but his teacher Mr. Miyagi is not. He nods ever so slightly in encouragement. The music swells to an emotional crescendo. Johnny, Daniel’s opponent and his chief nemesis goes to strike and Daniel unleashes the Crane Kick which fells his enemy. The crowd go wild. It makes the hairs stand up on the back of my head every time. To be honest, it makes the hairs stand up when I think about it. Now being no exception.

It seems almost pointless to complain about the Hollywood remake anymore. It has simply become a fact of life. Your favorite film will be remade someday. My actual all-time favorite film, “John Carpenter’s Halloween”, has been remade with horrific results: the horrible, detestable Rob Zombie edition. Its liberating to let go of the anger that these films produce and remind yourself: the original is not going anywhere. Of course you can question the artistic merit behind these things, and you can lament the generations who will see the ‘new’ version, not the original.

It was with my love of the original, and these thoughts, weighing heavy in my heart that I went along to see “The Karate Kid” 2010 remake. The update is almost a scene-for-scene remake of the original plot (Entertainment.ie strangely claimed it only borrowed minor plotpoints. It is an almost identical story), but with some major changes to the location and characters. The new Daniel-san is Dre Parker, a 12-year old from Detroit who is moving with his mother to a new job and life in China. Changing the action from California to China is a really welcome addition, as it allows the film to retain the originals plot but make itself distinct enough. This brings with it one other major change; Dre does not learn Karate, which is a Japanese martial art, but Kung-Fu.

This point seems to have brought some amount of debate. Why is it called “The Karate Kid”? Well, its called “The Karate Kid” because its a remake of the original. I guess they could have called it “The Kung-Fu Kid” but Hollywood marketeers being what they are probably feared some kind of confusion on our part and didn’t want to risk it. For me, I don’t really mind, because the switch to Kung-Fu was a very clever move. It helped give this film its own identity.

For me, “The Karate Kid” 2010 is the perfect way to do a remake. If you absolutely have to remake a film, you should retain the spirit of the original but then do your own thing. And “The Karate Kid” does this excellently, mainly in part to the great acting and the locations. I will go on record here and say it is not as good as the original, at all. But it stands on its own feet, as Roger Ebert said. Will Smith’s son Jaden Smith plays Dre well, and delivers an excellent performance. Dre is younger than Daniel, so it makes the pain of moving/bullying even harder to take, and Smith portrays it perfectly.

Jackie Chan is drafted in as Mr. Han, the new Mr. Miyagi. Chan has a huge job here, as Pat Morita’s Oscar-nominated portrayal as Mr. Miyagi is one of cinema’s most beloved characters. But Chan wisely plays Han differently. He is much less charming than Miyagi, much more of a socially-reclusive sad character, and this helps set Mr. Han apart. He also delivers a very powerful scene, where he gets to flex his acting chops.

As I said this film is remarkably similar in plot to the original, but at every turn they try to put their own spin on things. The location helps too, including training on the Great Wall and a memorable visit to a Kung-Fu training centre/Daoist Monastery. There is also something powerful about the central characters leaving behind a destitute and jobless Detroit for the buzzing hive of activity that is Beijing.

The final tournament delivers a similar level of excitement to the original, sadly however, without Joe Esposito’s classic “You’re The Best”. (I should also note, the new version is much more violent than the original. Sign of the times?)

Then we get to the final moment of the tournament, Dre Parker’s own Crane Kick moment. The film makers again refer to the original, but put their own Kung-Fu twist on it. Does it match the power of the original? No, but its very well done, and my nephew and niece nearly hit the ceiling of the cinema with delight as Dre faces his tormentors and his own fears. They loved this film. And I liked it a lot too. Its a well-crafted film which respectfully pays homage to its origins. A worthy remake.

I will show the original to my nephew and niece someday. I wonder, however, if I haven’t ruined it for them now. Dre Parker is their Daniel-san. But if that is to be the case, thankfully Jaden Smith, Jackie Chan and the film makers have left them with a memorable and worthy version of this classic story.

Sadly, it does end with a Justin Bieber song. But hey, the original had Bananarama.