By Kai Curry
NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
“The Karate Kid” was my brother’s jam. Even so, it was impossible not to grow up fully aware of every pivotal scene and every famous line (“wax on, wax off, grasshopper!”) from that iconic first film. “Karate Kid: Legends” released to theaters on May 29, does its best to pull together all of the threads of the franchise, from the many sequels to the recently ended TV series, “Cobra Kai.”
In order to do this, the movie starts with a scene set in Okinawa in 1986. It was great to see Mr. Miyagi (the wonderful Pat Morita) and Daniel-san (the steadfast Ralph Macchio) in their old roles right from the get-go. The purpose of this surprise is to explain that Miyagi Karate in Japan is connected to Han Kung Fu in China with new dialogue, part of it generated by AI in a Miyagi voiceover. This paved the way for Jackie Chan to return as Han Shifu, a role he previously played in past “Karate Kid” movies, including that one-off with Jaden Smith. “Two branches, one tree” they repeat to infinity here, meaning that the two schools are closely connected in spite of some differences. This becomes thoroughly convincing as the protagonist, Li Fong, played by rising Chinese American star Ben Wang (most recently in “Mean Girls”), utilizes both styles to achieve his goals.
Legends in their own time
I really liked this movie. I was very much looking forward to the inclusion of both Chan and Macchio in “Legends” and I was not disappointed. I remember what a big crush my best friend at the time had on Macchio when he debuted in the 1980s. He was a phenomenon, a clean, respectful guy whose face was regularly on the cover of the teen magazines. He has been a quiet presence on the screen over the years. Chan, of course, is entering his golden years—but he’s still got it. He may be a bit pampered by his fame (I wish every outfit he wore in “Legends” was not so perfectly curated and immaculate; it just doesn’t fit in), yet his humor, and at times dignity, were needed in this movie to offset Li Fong’s impetuous, tortured youth. These legendary actors were the “two branches” personified. I never tired of seeing them together.
Chan plays Li’s mentor and sensei in Beijing. We briefly get the idea that student and master have a close relationship, and that Li’s relationship with his mom (Macao-born Ming-Na Wen) is fraught, before Li is whisked off to New York City due to his mom’s change of job. “A fresh start!” Mom encourages Son, and they are immediately more Chinese in the U.S. than they were in China (a stereotype that often proves true of immigrants), going to temple (“we never went to temple in Beijing!” Li protests) to light a lantern for Li’s tragically deceased older brother. “New life, new traditions!” Mom responds. While all this was going on, I was thinking, this is threatening to be kind of cheesy—the relocation, the teenager disobeying his parents, the dead brother that little brother looked up to and now can’t get over—but the movie didn’t go that way.
“Legends” is fresh. It reunites the past with the present in a pleasing, not-overdone way. Li and his mom move into Little Italy (I could not help noticing that their house was gigantic by New York City standards—good job, Mom!), where Li meets local pizza maker Victor (Joshua Jackson) and his charming, hard-working daughter, Mia (Sadie Stanley). Li falls in love with Mia (that’s a no-brainer) and in spite of his mom’s edict to stop fighting (both are scarred by what fighting did to Li’s brother, no spoilers), Li decides to help Victor win a boxing tournament.
Legend in the making
The kid teaching the adult was a charming and genius twist. Although Li’s fighting performance was a bit choppy at first—he somehow bumbles a fight with his rival for Mia’s affection Conor (Aramis Knight), and then kicks a$$ against multiple ADULT fighters in an alley—he evens out and is impressive as the young prodigy.
“Kung fu is in everything,” he teaches Victor, and we get a delightful series of scenes in which Li uses the pizza restaurant as Victor’s training ground. This reiterates and solidifies those original scenes between Daniel-san and Miyagi sensei, where Daniel is asked to carry out seemingly mundane tasks with a larger goal of honing his skills, and it’s really a lot of fun. Victor is deferential to his young teacher; there is no racism, and as a bonus, there is no racist denial of Li’s courtship of his daughter, Mia. Isn’t that nice?
I admit I was skeptical beforehand of Wang’s ability to pull this off, yet I warmed to his performance very quickly. He did a great job of expressing a range of emotion, all the while convincingly portraying a teenager—the blushing over his crush, the hot temper, the guilt and angst related to his family obligations. When Li reaches a breaking point, and is about to throw in the towel, enter Han Shifu, who convinces everyone—including Mom—that it’s not okay to give up. Li aims to enter the “Five Boroughs Tournament” (part of the “Cobra Kai” universe) in order to finally put Conor in his place and also help Victor and Mia with a business debt. Oh, and fight his own demons, yeah that. It’s at this point (SPOILER) that Han calls on Daniel-san, visiting him in his home in California. The two old masters train the young master on a rooftop in NYC: what a great new iconic setting for the movie franchise, uniting Japan, China, and the U.S. Watching Li/Wang practice his moves against the city sky is actually breathtaking. The constant good-natured arguing between Han and LaRusso (Daniel) is entertaining and amusing. “There’s two of them!” Li groans from his position on the ground, where he ends up A LOT.
Some folks don’t appreciate “Karate Kid: Legends” as well as I do. Maybe because I didn’t pay a lot of attention to what came between, then this movie for me was the perfect tie-in. Maybe because I don’t care if Jackie Chan is a sellout—he will always be a legend to this writer who discovered his movies while living in Hawaii (and ate at his restaurant!), watched every single dang one, and even read his autobiography. I know how hard he trained—he’s living his well deserved success now. And maybe because I watched Ben Wang in “American Born Chinese” and wondered about his potential. To see him in “Karate Kid: Legends,” fully owning his role in this iconic franchise, bringing his own vibe to it while honoring everyone that came before—that’s no small feat. “Karate Kid: Legends,” to me, is well done, it’s not too much and it’s not too little. It’s just right. I had a smile on my face the entire time—including the very end where we get a fun cameo related to pizza and “Cobra Kai.” Delightful. Heart-warming. 100% recommend.
Kai can be reached at newstips@nwasianweekly.com.
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