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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.

Karate Kid, The

EMAILPRINTColumbia Pictures (Sony)

Karate Kid, The reviews
61
6.6 User Score:

Generally favorable reviews

Based on 37 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

Based on 66 votes
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Movie Info

Genre(s): Action  |  Drama  |  Family/Kids

Written by: Michael Soccio

Directed by: Harald Zwart

Release Date:
Theatrical: June 11, 2010

Running Time: minutes, Color

Origin: USA | China

Summary

RATING: PG for bullying, martial arts action violence and some mild language

Starring Jackie Chan, Jaden Smith, and Taraji P. Henson

12-year-old Dre Parker could've been the most popular kid in Detroit, but his mother's latest career move has landed him in China. Dre immediately falls for his classmate Mei Ying—and the feeling is mutual—but cultural differences make such a friendship impossible. Even worse, Dre's feelings make an enemy of the class bully, Cheng. In the land of kung fu, Dre knows only a little karate, and Cheng puts “the karate kid” on the floor with ease. With no friends in a strange land, Dre has no one to turn except maintenance man Mr. Han, who is secretly a master of kung fu. As Han teaches Dre that kung fu is not about punches and parries, but maturity and calm, Dre realizes that facing down the bullies will be the fight of his life. (Sony Pictures)

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

91

St. Petersburg Times Steve Persall

What's fun is how the new Karate Kid embraces and vastly improves the cliches, keeping the plot cleverly updated for a generation that never heard of Ralph Macchio.

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88

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

If you've seen “The Karate Kid” (1984), the memories will come back during this 2010 remake. That's a compliment.

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80

Time Out New York Joshua Rothkopf

Given the dreck we’ve seen this summer, it’s nice to be reminded of the virtues of clean storytelling and cultural curiosity.

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80

Boxoffice Magazine Amy Nicholson

Jaden Smith is destined to be a star by the force of will (and wallets) of parents Will and Jada Smith, both producers on The Karate Kid. But he's also got the raw material.

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80

Time Richard Corliss

Jaden may have to carry the burden of family celebrity, even as he carries his new film. Expertly.

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75

New Orleans Times-Picayune Mike Scott

The casting is perfect, and the resetting of the story to China allows for a satisfyingly cinematic retelling.

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75

Washington Post Ann Hornaday

The new Karate Kid brings fresh life and perspective to the classic tale of perseverance and cross-generational friendship, thanks to Harald Zwart's sensitive direction and two exceptionally appealing stars.

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75

USA Today Claudia Puig

Solidly entertaining.

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75

Portland Oregonian M. E. Russell

Ultimately, it's a formulaic sports movie for kids that hits the expected dramatic beats.

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75

San Francisco Chronicle Amy Biancolli

A fine, fun remake of a movie that updates, transplants and reimagines the original without sacrificing its heart or goofy charm.

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75

Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman

Fun, and believable, on the most important level: It convinces us that Jaden Smith has what it takes to fight his way to the top.

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75

St. Louis Post-Dispatch Joe Williams

The kids in the movie, from musicians to marital artists, are unusually skillful, and Smith seems assured of more starring roles. By the end of The Karate Kid, we can't help cheering, even when we know we've been sucker-punched.

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75

Philadelphia Inquirer Carrie Rickey

The kung fu sequences, although enjoyable, probably would not make the Jackie Chan Top 10. However, Chan's acting is his most affecting since the 1993 policer "Crime Story."

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75

Boston Globe Ty Burr

The one thing that should have been changed but hasn’t is the title, which makes no sense at all in a movie about kung fu.

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70

Movieline Michelle Orange

If only the director had learned Mr. Han’s most important lesson: Being still and doing nothing are two very different things.

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70

Variety Justin Chang

It's a sign of that pic's dramatic durability that "Kid" manages to be as absorbing as it is, despite its nearly 2½-hour running time.

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70

New York Daily News Elizabeth Weitzman

It has heart and a good kick.

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67

Christian Science Monitor Peter Rainer

The Karate Kid will probably work best for young audiences unaware of its predecessor – or of much of anything else for that matter.

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67

Austin Chronicle Marc Savlov

A winning update of a classic piece of Eighties' filmmaking, and that in itself is something of a coup.

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63

ReelViews James Berardinelli

The problem with the film is that that story, hackneyed when it first made it to the screen in 1984, has grown only more tired over the past 26 years.

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63

Chicago Tribune Michael Phillips

Jackie Chan co-stars in Morita's old role of the humble maintenance man who coaches the Bullied One. The older Chan gets, the simpler and truer he becomes as a performer.

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60

Arizona Republic Bill Goodykoontz

Does the movie have anything new to say, anything different from John G. Avildsen's 1984 original, with Ralph Macchio and Pat Morita? Not particularly.

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60

Empire James White

Smith might be the focus, but while he’s got the charisma and the moves, it’s Chan who makes it punch above its weight. Nice scenery too.

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60

Slate Dana Stevens

If I had a child near Dre's age, I'd drag him or her out of "Marmaduke" and into The Karate Kid--but not before requiring an at-home screening of the still unsurpassed original.

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60

Los Angeles Times Betsy Sharkey

A kung fu kick of a film that hits more than it misses.

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58

The Onion (A.V. Club) Scott Tobias

That the film works as well as it does--as an attractive, rousing time-passer for children--speaks more to the endurance of a good formula than its revitalization.

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50

NPR Mark Jenkins

Despite the local color, the movie isn't especially globalized. The major characters all speak English, and the action sequences throb to the music of Lady Gaga, the Roots and Gorillaz.

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50

Chicago Reader Andrea Gronvall

This is a smart departure for Chan, who's been wasting his talent in mediocre comedies; the other actors don't fare as well. The plot takes forever to get rolling, and the movie is hamstrung by numerous tourism sequences.

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50

Orlando Sentinel Roger Moore

At two hours and 15 minutes, the new Karate Kid takes an absurd amount of time to get to that “big match.”

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50

The Hollywood Reporter Frank Scheck

It's a measure of the times that the new version of The Karate Kid manages to be longer and bigger-budgeted than the original while having lesser impact.

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50

Village Voice Nick Pinkerton

There is the impression, deadly to the sense of fun, that the talent here actually thought they were remaking a classic.

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50

Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern

You could also say it's like they're likable tourists on a quest to plunder an endearing movie that didn't need this mediocre remake.

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50

Rolling Stone Peter Travers

Short review of three little words: Way. Too. Long.

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50

Salon.com Mary Elizabeth Williams

At times, the movie feels less like a coming-of-age tale and more like an extended promo for the Chinese tourism bureau.

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50

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Liam Lacey

Smith’s charisma isn’t always an asset to the movie though. Unlike the unknown Macchio in the original Kid, there’s nothing vulnerable about Smith except for his diminutive size, which is its own problem.

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50

The New York Times A.O. Scott

Is this Karate Kid as good as the original? No, although it is better than the sequels. But why bother with nostalgia? It’s probably good enough.

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38

New York Post Kyle Smith

A popcorn picture that thinks it’s “The Last Emperor,” The Karate Kid is about as likely to grab your youngster’s attention as any other propaganda film made by the Chinese government.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this movie is 6.6 (out of 10) based on 66 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Eric M. gave it a1:
The only thing wrong with this movie is that they changed if from a teenager in California to a kid in China. Seeing Jackie Chan fight six 12 year olds is silly, not exiting. That about sums up what is wrong with the picture. Whoever wrote this, never watched the original, just read a treatment. So much is lost. Lost sources of conflict include; rich versus poor, racism against orientals, and the misuse of karate. Also lost humor, pacing, and some great little touches. For example. What does the mother do? In the original she is working in a restaurant and going to become a manager. What happened to the girl's girlfriends? Don't violin prodigies have any friends? As for the principle characters motivation. Changing them from sixteen year teenagers to twelve year old kids makes the story silly. I just can't buy hormone driven behavior in these kids. However, I'll give it points for nice location, and finding all those English speaking actors.

Michael M gave it a7:
This movie seems to revert to older ways of film making. The story has a moral and the audio actually fits the emotion of the scenes. The story can seem to drag out in some parts (I blame the screenwriter trying to fit too much in), though the acting is believable from the cast. I feel the movie was appropriately cast and the camera is not too jerky or capturing worthless angles. This is a martial arts movie; if you do not like martial arts movies do not go see it. There are no car chases, big explosions, gun fights, sex scenes, or gore. 7 for not a bad movie, but not brutal.

Alan G gave it a9:
This movie is really cool.

Peter gave it a9:
Loved it. Better than the original.

Shiang H. gave it a3:
I almost died of goosebumps while watching this dreadful movie.

James M. gave it a10:
It was really really good the action was great and i got to say they were all really good actors and my favorite part is when he saw the snake and he was staring at mr han.

John S gave it a3:
The only guy that did it right (in my opinion)sumarizing the crtic of this movie is Rene from MiamiHerald..."Smith is a cute kid, but fundamentally miscast. The protagonist in the original film was in his mid-teens, a young man in the making. Here, prepubescent seventh-graders enact heart-thumping romance and bone-thumping beat-downs, which makes for uncomfortable viewing. Ironically, Smith radiates a confidence that makes him seem less vulnerable than his predecessor, Ralph Macchio. "

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