When a new “Karate Kid” cinema film was announced in autumn 2022, many fans reacted skeptically for the first time. Finally, the celebrated Netflix series “Cobra Kai” was already the perfect continuation of the legendary franchise. What else is another movie on it? Especially since the series managers were not directly involved in the canvas project. And then in addition to original star Ralph Macchio, Jackie Chan should also resume his role from the 2010, which is financially successful, but a lot of caught remake “Karate Kid”. No wonder that the alarm bells were starting.
But now it is precisely this merging of the two worlds that are in “Karate Kid: Legends” As a success story proves: Jackie Chan to see again in a big Hollywood film here for the first time since the disappointing remake is just incredible fun. And even if the series fans are determined: the extensive ignoring of “Cobra Kai” is also a clever move! This makes it clear that “Karate Kid” in the cinema is simply much larger than a Netflix series (and you don't have to fight MCU-like with six seasons to understand all allusions). But the strongest trump cards from the new edition of Jonathan Destle are leading actors Ben Wang, action choreography and a surprising amount of heart …
The new “Karate Kid” Ben Wang cuts a very good figure alongside his prominent co-stars.
Despite his mother's ban (Ming-na Wen), Li Fong uses (Ben Wang) every possible second to in the Kung Fu school of his uncle and master Mr. Han (Jackie Chan) to train. But then the shock comes. Li Fong's mother in New York also wants to start a new life to leave the place where her eldest son died. For the junior, Kung-Fu is finally history-instead, it suddenly says in a new country and in a new school for demanding tests. After all, he quickly became friends with the neighbor Mia (Sadie Stanley). He even trains a little with her father Victor (Joshua Jackson), a pizza maker and ex-boxer with money problems.
However, Li Fong also gets the acquaintance of Mia's ex-boyfriend Connor (Aramis Knight)-and the karate champion spans his butt in a confrontation. Then Mr. Han appears, who felt that something is wrong with his former student. He encourages Li Fong to register at the city's largest Martial arts tournament in order to put the defending champion Connor into his barriers. But to train Li Fong, you need someone who can karate. Fortunately, Mr. Han remembers that his old friend Mr. Miyagi once from his best student Daniel Larusso (Ralph Macchio) told …
A well -known story with a lot of heart!
With global income of almost $ 360 million at a budget of just $ 40 million, the “Karate Kid” remake with Jaden Smith was a financial megahit. Therefore, there should be a continuation promptly. But co-star Jackie Chan stepped on the brakes. He wanted to make sure that the sequel would be better. The action superstar is therefore said to have rejected several script designs and sent it back to the further revision. So more and more time struggled before the project was canceled in Hollywood. The fact that Chan suddenly agreed with a completely new attempt was already good news.
The China superstar may have irritated that “Karate Kid: Legends” can quickly free itself from the ballast of the series. In the style of a legacy sequel, the opening scene including “Karate Kid II” reference and a short animated introduction are combined with the previous universes-but at the same time it quickly becomes clear that you do not have to know any of the cinema predecessors and certainly not “Cobra Kai” in order to have fun here. It is a new, single film. He certainly does not tell an innovative story: the hero is in love again, but the ex-boyfriend of his swarm turns out to be through and through bad racket, which is also driven by a sadistic ex-coach. And again the resolution runs into the expected railways.
“Karate Kid: Legends” combines many well -known elements, but also impresses with a lot of heart!
What “Karate Kid: Legends” still makes you see: it is visibly an incredible amount of heart in this story. This is particularly revealed in the basic sympathetic figures that gather here and to which you consistently press your fingers crossed. This also applies to some secondary characters, such as the Victor embodied by “Dawson's Creek” cult star Joshua Jackson. In his cinema comeback after a decade full of series roles, he has a surprisingly large storyline as an ex-boxer who wants to get fit for the ring again with the help of Li Fong. The wonderful chemistry between Jackson and Ben Wang makes the upside down student mentor dynamics (the boy trains the old) an entertaining pleasure. There is also the fun training of training that you want to see in a “Karate Kid” film.
She even compensates for the rows -defining assembly in the later training of Li Fong by Mr. Han and Daniel Larusso significantly. Anyway, some fans should disappoint that everything is told very quickly. It makes sense because Li Fong is already introduced as a martial arts ace and it is only a question of refining his kung fu with karate skills. But especially in the second half, the action seems very rushed. “Karate Kid: Legends” has a crunchy term of only 94 minutes – but the original has already proven that the story is over two hours. As a result, Ralph Macchio's appearance remains quite small in the end – and a lot is hastily occurred. In the second half, the film does not smear only because the first 30 minutes have laid a strong base and the characters have long been their heart.
Jackie Chan brings more than his spectacle
Jackie-chan fans should also know beforehand that they only see their darling in a supporting role. In an amusing kitchen fight, however, the “Police Story” star proves that he was still on it beyond the 70. The best that he contributes to “Karate Kid: Legends” next to his charisma is his action expertise. So not only he was involved in the film, he also brought his personal stunt team with him. Stunt coordinator and second-unit director Peng Zhang is also a former double of Chan (at “Rush Hour 3”)-and has been working in Hollywood for over two decades. In addition, it was certainly not a disadvantage that he recently was responsible for the action of “American Born Chinese”.
Because in the Disney series none other than Ben Wang held the leading role-and he is not only the true star of “Karate Kid: Legends”, but a real action discovery: Wang has the necessary body control it needs for grandiose choreographies-and at the same time has the charisma to involve and captivate us. The highlight is a back yard fight in which the Li Fong, who is just freshly pulled into the Big Apple, who spoils the rackets of a loan shark when she wants his neighbor Victor on the leather. The sequence is full of ideas and ideas that give the fight throughout WoW moments. The choreography skilfully combines Wang's skills with the use of typical New York utensils, such as downhill fire ladders or trash cans.
It was shot in Montreal, but the film's best action scene still uses the New York scene.
However, the truth also includes the feeling that the scene could have been even better in several places: several times in a row you would have liked to have seen the consistent choreography and seeds! Is that due to a certain defusing for the desired age rating? Or – what is more likely – related to the attempt to create more dynamics with more cuts? But instead of observing the protagonists for a long time in a total time, we switch between several perspectives that not always promote the overview. It is a weakness that shimmers through not only here in the back yard, but also in the otherwise exciting final fight at an impressive setting.
Conclusion: With Ben Wang, a possible new Martial arts star enters the cinema stage. Supported by Jackie Chan (in his Hollywood comeback), the new Karate Kid inspires-and not only in the highly choreographed but not always perfectly cut action scenes. Instead of demanding prior knowledge to the audience, you tell an entertaining (if at the same time also very short) modification of the inspiring good-against-evil story, where “only” is needed to win in a martial arts tournament in order to move everything straight again.