REVIEW BY THE LOSER
PLOT: 12 year old Dre (played by Jaden Smith) is a kid from Detroit who moves to China because of his mom's work. When he arrives, he receives massive culture shock and is bullied from a group of kids in school. He feels like he does not belong and says he hates living in China. One day, he gets back at the bullies by showering them with dirty water. They proceed to chase him through the streets and slums until they finally corner him. Finally, when Dre loses all hope, his apartment's maintenance man, Mr.Han, shows up and easily incapacitates all of the bullies. Dumbfounded that the maintenance worker is also a Kung-Fu master, Dre starts to train with the man for a Kung-Fu tournament coming up.
PROS: In the way this movie was made, I can't imagine anyone else playing Dre other than Jaden Smith. His cocky, conceited attitude is perfect for the role. I also liked how this movie was not an exact remake of the first film. Sure, the basic story template remains pretty much the same, but all the little details are different. Instead of taking place in the U.S, The Karate Kid was filmed completely in China, which I thought was great considering that a lot of movies that take place in other countries usually means being filmed in a random city in the U.S.
The characters for the most part are likeable, though I felt that Dre's mom (Taraji P. Henson) has a little too much screentime for her own good. Jackie Chan is excellently cast as Mr. Han, and his talent shows. Dre's love interest Mei Ying, is likeable, albeit 1 dimensional. But of course, people see a movie called The Karate Kid for the fight scenes, not the characters or romances. Those people will be pleased. Very pleased. Not only are the fight scenes in this extremely entertaining; you actually get the feeling that it is a real competition and you are rooting for someone. The sounds of punches and kicks are appropriately brutal, and the film includes some notable things form the original.
CONS: Parents bringing little kids to see this BE WARNED. The movie is surprisingly violent, especially in scenes where Dre is being punched in the gut by the bully. Children may be frightened. Other than that, I can't think of any real bad things about the movie.
BOTTOM LINE: A solid film from director Harald Zwart. After seeing his other movies such as Agent Cody Banks and The Pink Panther 2, this movie seemed like it was from a completely different director. Fun movie that I recommend for everyone.
Is It Funny? Somewhat, though don't expect a laugh riot
Does it live up to the hype? Yes
Wait for DVD? No, watch it in theaters
OVERALL RATING: 9/10
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