The original “Karate Kid” is beloved. I wasn’t a huge fan of the 2010 version starring Jackie Chan and Jaden Smith, and I never got into the “Cobra Kai” TV series. Take a little bit of each of those, and throw-in a heavy dose of “Rocky” and “Creed”, and you get “Karate Kid: Legends”. It’s an hour and a half long pure money grab, though according to the early numbers, it doesn’t seem to be attracting audiences.
Chan returns as Mr. Han, the Kung Fu teacher of Li Fong (played by Ben Wong, from the Disney+ series “American Born Chinese”). He and his doctor mom (Ming-Na Wen) are moving from Beijing to NYC for a fresh start. Li quickly befriends Mia (Sadie Stanley), the daughter of pizza shop owner Victor (played by Joshua Jackson, who at this moment, is the star of the still in limbo ABC drama series “Doctor Odyssey”).
About half of “Karate Kid: Legends” is Li and Mia forming a friendship that may go beyond that designation, as well as Li teaching Victor how to box so he can fight his foes in the ring and the alleyway. They also make a lot of pizza, which made me kind of hungry.
Li’s also studying for his SATs, and Mia’s ex-boyfriend just happens to be a ruthless Martial Artist named Conor Day (Aramis Knight). They’re destined to face-off in an “epic” tournament showdown. (Big surprise.) And who’s gonna fly-in from Beijing to help train Li? And who else is gonna fly-in from Los Angeles to help train Li and banter with Mr. Han?
If you’ve seen the commercials and the trailers (including one that aired in its entirely during the season finale of FOX game show “The Floor” last December), you know that Ralph Macchio reprises his iconic role of Daniel LaRusso. He only has a minor presence in “Karate Kid: Legends”, with some so-so “remembering Mr. Miyagi / Pat Morita” scenes. Frankly, most of the “emotional” moments of the film, especially in the second half, feel like they were chopped to bits. I saw director Jonathan Entwistle say in an interview that he’s all for short runtimes. And at least this isn’t 2:20 like the 2010 remake. But five more minutes here for a little breathing room would’ve been okay.
But it really doesn’t matter because of Rob Lieber’s basic, disjointed screenplay, with highly convenient situations for these characters. There are a bunch of corny moments, during several of which I laughed out loud. “Karate Kid: Legends” gets a Black Belt in absurdity. On that level, it’s mildly entertaining, and Chan shows that he can still act, but there’s no legitimate reason to see this.
Yes, there’s a mid-credits cameo. No, it’s not Hilary Swank. And if she and her team were waiting to get involved until a sequel, I now predict that’s not gonna happen.
LCJ GRADE: D
Running Time: 94 min.