The Karate Kid - Round 1
I won’t go into what I hated about the Will Smith remake. Instead, I’ll talk about what I love about the original, and perhaps touch on the things I did like about the 2010 version of the 1984 classic.
Face me. Bow. — Face each other. Bow. — aaaand FIGHT!
The keyword is “Karate,” not Kung Fu. The original movie implemented Goju Ryu Karate, and it was by way of Kata that the mentor passed on his knowledge of Okinawan martial art to the student disguised as “man work” around the house. So from the title alone it was coherent with the story. Karate. Kid. Everybody knew what they were in for.
One Point: Saringo …aaaand FIGHT!
Being a “fish out of water” is one thing; being bullied for no reason is another. The newer take on this “fish” is a racist attack on Dre Parker (Jaden Smith). Think about it. Did ‘Ol Boy resent him for any-plausable-thing else? With Daniel Laruso (Ralph Macchio), at least he was stealing the girlfriend the bad guy hadn’t ex’d out yet.
(“I thought they broke up?” “She did… He didn’t!”)
With that, it makes sense. This scrawny kid from Jersey is trying to make moves on someone off the market, or at least in Johnny’s mind she was. Then to top it off, well-meaning Daniel was getting in the middle of their argument. King Solomon, the wisest man in history next to Jesus, even warned against meddling in your neighbor’s affairs. You don’t get in the face of a guy in tight jeans, headband and his leather jacket sleeves rolled up. You just don’t do that! (Daniel had it coming. I’m just saying.) And in contrast, Dre was just a black kid in Hong Kong who had a thing for a girl who wasn’t even close friends with the local bad boy. In an age, mind you, where “things” like that aren’t things yet.
Two points: Saringo
And all I got to say is two words. Two words why I prefer the original story. 1) Elizabeth, 2) Shue.
Winner: Mr. Saringo
…to be continued.
