The Karate Kid: Remake

Domestic: $176,591,618
Foreign: $182,534,404
Everyone, from the youngest to the oldest, knows the name of Mr. Miyagi. The late Pat Morita turned the role of the immigrant handyman into a legend in the 1984 classic The Karate Kid. The name of Mr. Miyagi has been uttered in multiple television shows and movies, separate from the story of The Karate Kid. The story of the Karate kid went down in history, not to be opposed by any other family friendly martial arts movie.

So what happens when the movie goes up against itself for the championship? In 2010, The Karate Kid made a come back for a new generation of kids and adults, hoping to have the similar effect that it's predecessor did. The remake stayed true to the original story with certain changes that made the film more interesting. Let's get into the similarities and differences of the films with a question at the forefront of our minds: Is Jackie Chan's Mr. Han better than Pat Morita's Mr. Miyagi?

The remake follows the story of Dre (played by Jaden Smith) and his mother Sherry (Played by Taraji P. Henson) as they venture from Detroit to China due to a job relocation. Once in China, Dre eventually meets the handyman for their complex Mr. Han, who seems to be a not so nice old man. Dre tries to charm a nice Chinese girl, but angers Cheng (played by Zhenwei Wang) who is a martial artist and a family friend of the Chinese girl. Dre suffers multiple beatings and starts to have emotional resentments towards China and his Mother for making him move their. One day in particular Dre tries to get revenge by splashing hot water on Cheng. This enrages Cheng and his friends and the chase Dre back to his home. Once their the begin beating on Dre severely. When Cheng was ready to deliver the final blow, Mr. Han stepped in and fought the boys off. Using ancient healing practices, Mr. Han able to heal Dre's wounds. Later Dre and Mr. Han meet with the instructor of the Dojo where Cheng trains and set up a challenge at the upcoming tournament.
New Version


Old Version


The story does not deviate much from the original, and the additions add variety and depth to the characters. For example, Mr. Han seems to be a cold person at times, but later we see that he lost his son and wife in a car accident and not through childbirth as the first film told. This added a level of anguish and self hatred to Mr. Han that Mr. Miyagi never had. Another noticeable difference is that the setting is not in the San Fernando Valley, it's in China, and the protagonist family is now African American, which adds racial tension between the characters Dre and Cheng. Mr. Han changes some dynamics by teaching Dre Kung-Fu instead of Karate, which brings this question to mind: Why wasn't it called The Kung-Fu Kid? It seems as though Dre went through more of a training than his first counterpart did. The snake part was exceptionally great.

These new changes have added depth to the story and offers a pleasant change of view on the old classic. But no matter what changes have happened or the new depths, MR. HAN IS NOT BETTER THAN MR. MIYAGI! Im sorry, ima fan of legends.