Review of The Karate Kid Part III (1989) by Barry N — 07 Feb 2011

The Karate Kid Part III is the 2nd sequel to the first Karate Kid and the only thing that I could think throughout the film was, "Did they really need another sequel?" They thought so apparently and so this film was made.

Most sequels have at least a couple of things that make a sequel worth watching, and this film only has 1. The villain, played chillingly by Thomas Ian Griffith, is the film's real treat, offering some frightening moments as well as some tense scenes. But a good villain alone cannot save a film.

I think one real problem I had with this film was Daniel. Ralph Macchio, who did so good in the first two, is just hammering his way through this movie, overreacting to everything, and offering some terrible dialogue that is made even worse by his delivery. It was almost as if he didn't care what has happening on screen.

Daniel's character in this film is also really bad. I mean, it seems like he has learned nothing from the first two movies about karate or about life. In fact, the only thing that suggests he is well educated in karate is the fact that that he mentions it and the fact that his is close to Mr. Miyagi. In fact, Daniel's actions in this film actually make him feel like a giant jerk and when he comes around you actually wonder whether he has learned his lesson.

I also had a problem with the teens that seemed overtly mean. They were willing to actually murder Daniel and Jessica, and they don't receive a punishment except losing the tournament. They were obviously trying to make these guys seem like someone more sinister than Daniel had ever encountered, but I think the filmmakers went way too far. And if you're going to go that far, at least let them have an appropriate punishment.

Even the fight sequence at the end seems lackluster. It is exciting in places, but in the end it was nothing special. Nothing new was accomplished, and the fight seemed like it was there just so fans wouldn't be disappointed.

By all accounts, this film isn't terrible, but it is an absolute case of a film series going on for 1 film too much. This is just a film that fails to capture your attention, and really makes you wonder if anybody learns anything. This film actually feels like a bad remake of this 1st film. You might enjoy this film if you were huge fans to the first, but I didn't.