Review of The Karate Kid (1984) by Nathan C — 08 Oct 2010

The latest entry in the Karate Kid franchise was a great movie, but you can't deny the power that the original KK had. With some great performances and some valuable life lessons, the original Karate Kid like its director's (John Avildsen) other classic, Rocky, will stand the test of time. Yes, it may have aged some, but that's what you should expect from films that came out this long ago.

The film opens as Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) and his mother Lucille (Randee Heller) move from New Jersey to Reseda, California. There he meets and falls in love with Ali Mills (Elizabeth Shue), but also finds a rival in her ex boyfriend Johnny (William Zabka). After being the victim of several beatings from Johnny and his friends, Daniel is rescued by his apartment's handyman, Mr. Miyagi (Pat Morita). Miyagi agrees to teach Daniel the ways of karate so that he can defeat his bullies. The film ultimately concludes at the local karate tournament, where Daniel fights the bullies who are led by the rough John Kreese (Martin Kove).

All of the praises that I gave to the remake are also in this film too. The cast does an excellent job (especially Macchio and Morita, just like Smith and Chan in the remake) and the film ultimately teaches us many life lessons. One thing that the original beats the remake with is the director. As I said in my review of the remake, its director wasn't really that notable. It's a bit different with the original. John Avildsen directed this after directing Rocky. Avildsen is the key director when it comes to these films, so that's something that the original has over the remake.

Also worth noting that I forgot to mention in the previous paragraph was the music. The score by Bill Conti is excellent and there are some very notable songs. Probably the most famous is 'You're the Best' from Joe Esposito.

I really don't have any problems with this movie. Yes you can say that it's a long movie, but it ain't really a problem because you don't really get bored.

So there's no doubt that the original Karate Kid is one of the best underdog movies of all time. Heck, it's probably one of the best sports movies of all time. Just remember Mr. Miyagi's words: 'Wax on, Wax off' - (Classic line).