KARATE KID remake trailer actually looks all right, I suppose

KARATE KID remake trailer actually looks all right, I suppose

Dec 23

Just one of a recent string of entirely pointless remakes to seize Hollywood by storm, The Karate Kid (sometimes The Kung-Fu Kid, but I think they dropped that title, for some reason) is just about as depressing and unnecessary as the rest of them. Plus it’s got Will Smith’s kid in it. Don’t you hate it when people become famous just because of their parents? Maybe you should become famous the old-fashioned way — you know, talent and hard work? Actions instead of circumstances? Whatever.

Anyway, this trailer impressed me for three reasons: 1 – the music wasn’t immediately cliche trailer fodder; 2 – some of the martial arts look well staged and well photographed; and 3 – Jackie Chan looks to be keeping the spirit of the original Mr Miyagi alive.

Of course there are some bad things about the trailer, like the horrible scene-jumping non-sequitor one-liner cliche last seen in the Knight And Day and Sherlock Holmes trailers, and the fact that the geographic relocation remains entirely unjustified and unexplained, but this is the kind of thing you have to put up with when viewing trailers. I’m sure the film makes a lot more sense.

So I’m cautiously optimistic that this won’t be a complete and utter waste of time and money. It’s definitely got potential to slide down the slippery slope into remake hell, currently populated by just about every single remake in the history of the world, but here’s hoping little Jaden is just plucky enough to pull the movie off. Oh, and Jackie Chan will probably help rake in the cash, especially based on his reverential but fresh take on the classic Miyagi archetype.

Any thoughts?