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{{Infobox Film| name = The Karate Kid| image = karate_kid.jpg| image_size =| caption =
The Karate Kid movie poster| director =
John G. Avildsen
[R.J. Louis (executive producer)
Bud S. Smith (associate producer)]| narrator =| starring = Ralph Macchio
Pat Morita
Elisabeth ShueMartin KoveWilliam Zabka
Randee Heller| cinematography = [James Crabe
[Bud S. Smith| released = [June 22,
1984 in film| runtime = 127 min.| country = U.S.| language = English language| budget =| gross = $90,815,558 | preceded_by =| followed_by =
The Karate Kid, Part II]
John G. Avildsen film starring
Ralph Macchio and
Pat Morita. It is a martial arts movie and an "
underdog (competition)" story much in the model of a previous Avildsen smash, the 1976 boxing picture
Rocky. It was a massive commercial hit and retains a popular following to this day. It also garnered a favorable critical reception, even earning
Pat Morita an Academy Awards nomination for
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
Tagline
He taught him the secret to karate lies in the mind and heart. Not in the hands.
Plot
Teenager Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) moves with his mother (Randee Heller) from
Newark, New Jersey to
Reseda, California, (San Fernando Valley), in search of a new beginning after the
death of Daniel's father. The handyman of their apartment building is a kindly and humble Ryukyuans immigrant named Mr. Miyagi (
Pat Morita).
The last night of summer, Daniel and his new friends from school are at the beach, where a girl named Ali Mills (
Elisabeth Shue) catches his attention. Her ex-boyfriend, Johnny Lawrence (
William Zabka), and his friends accost Ali. Daniel attempts to intervene and ultimately fights with Johnny. Although he knows some karate, learned at the
YMCA in New Jersey and from books, Daniel is defeated by Johnny, who is better trained.
Unwittingly, Daniel has made an enemy of the Cobra Kai karate dojo's best student. The Cobra Kai dojo teaches an unethical, macho form of
martial arts, fueled by the credo "Strike first. Strike hard. No
mercy." Johnny and his
crony thereafter torment Daniel at every opportunity. When Daniel retaliates with a prank at a
Halloween dance party, he is pursued by Johnny and four of his Cobra Kai friends (dressed in skeleton costumes), who proceed to beat him until he can barely stand. Mr. Miyagi appears out of nowhere and rescues Daniel by defeating all five Cobra Kai students in a surprising display of karate. Awed, Daniel asks Mr. Miyagi to be his teacher, or
sensei. Mr. Miyagi initially refuses, but later realizes that his intervention will result in Johnny and his friends taking further revenge on Daniel. He agrees to go with Daniel to the Cobra Kai dojo to see if they can resolve the
conflict.
Mr. Miyagi and Daniel confront the
sensei of the Cobra Kai dojo, John Kreese (
Martin Kove), to stop the harassment. However, Kreese, a Vietnam veteran, is a vicious fighter who sneers at the concepts of mercy and restraint, and has indoctrinated this
philosophy into his students. Mr. Miyagi announces that Daniel will enter the “All Valley Karate Tournament”, where Cobra Kai students can fight Daniel on equal terms. Mr. Miyagi also requests that the bullying stop while the boy trains. Kreese orders his students to leave Daniel alone, but threatens that if he does not show up for the tournament, the harassment will resume and Miyagi will also become a target.
Mr. Miyagi becomes Daniel's teacher and, slowly, a surrogate father figure. He begins Daniel's training by having him perform laborious chores such as wax many cars, sanding a wooden floor, painting a fence, and painting the house encircled by the fence. Eventually, Daniel becomes frustrated, believing that he has learned nothing of karate, whereupon Mr. Miyagi reveals that Daniel has unknowingly been learning defensive blocks, through the various arm movements learned doing the chores.
It is revealed that Mr. Miyagi lost his wife and son in childbirth at the Manzanar Japanese internment camp while he was serving overseas with the U.S. Army during World War II. The loss of his
family and Daniel's loss of his father further strengthens the father-son surrogacy. Daniel also discovers that the outwardly peace and serene Mr. Miyagi was a recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor for
hero against German forces in Europe. A brief flashback by Mr. Miyagi implies that the decoration was for killing many Germans and details are not otherwise specified.
As the training continues, Mr. Miyagi demonstrates a form of
pain suppression on Daniel when the latter becomes sore from the ferocious exercises of training. Mr. Miyagi also instructs Daniel in various techniques, including the famous "Crane Kick." Through the teaching, Daniel learns not only karate, but also important life lessons, such as the importance of balance. This is reflected by the
belief that martial arts training is as much about training the spirit as the body. Daniel applies the life lessons that Mr. Miyagi has taught him to strengthen his relationship with Ali.
At the tournament, Daniel surprises everybody by remaining intact until the semifinals. Kreese instructs Daniel's semifinal opponent, (Cobra Kai student Bobby), to disable Daniel with an illegal attack to the knee. Bobby resists, claiming "I can beat this guy!", but Kreese insists that Bobby put Daniel "out of commission." With Daniel injured and unable to continue, Mr. Miyagi assures him he has already proven himself. However, Daniel believes that if he does not continue, his tormentors will have gotten the best of him. He therefore persuades Mr. Miyagi to use the special pain suppression technique to allow him to finish the tournament. As Johnny is about to be declared the winner by default, Daniel steps into the ring. Kreese orders his student to fight without mercy, famously telling Johnny to "sweep the leg," targeting Daniel's previous injury. Johnny blanches at the order, knowing that he can win with such an unethical move, but wants to do so fairly in the ring. He reluctantly obeys Kreese and does what is ordered, knocking Daniel to the floor. Though in great pain, Daniel refuses to stay down.
In the final scene, Daniel and Johnny are tied, both one point away from victory. Daniel, barely able to stand, assumes the "Crane Kick" stance, and delivers a kick squarely to Johnny's
chin to win the tournament. Johnny acquires respect for Daniel as a result. Without malice, he presents the trophy to his opponent, while Mr. Miyagi looks on proudly.
Cast
It has been reported that Chuck Norris turned down the role of John Kreese because he did not want to portray a character that reinforced a negative stereotype of martial arts. However, Norris disputed this story during a February 9 2006 appearance on
The Adam Carolla Show. There Norris insisted that he was not offered the role, and that he was already acting in leading roles at that time anyway . Additionally, according to the special edition DVD commentary, the studio originally wanted the role of Mr. Miyagi to be played by
Toshiro Mifune, but writer Robert Mark Kamen was opposed to that casting choice.
Mako (actor) was also considered for the role of Mr. Miyagi, but was not available due to prior commitments to film the
Conan the Barbarian sequel,
Conan the Destroyer
Impact
The Karate Kid spawned an entire franchise of related items and memorabilia, such as action figures, head bands, posters, T-shirts, The Karate Kid (video game), etc. A short-lived
The Karate Kid (TV series) spin-off aired on
NBC in 1989. The film also had three sequels, and it launched the career of Macchio, who would turn into a teen idol featured on the covers of magazines such as
Tiger Beat. It vitalized the acting career of Morita, who was nominated for a
Best Supporting Actor Academy Awards for his performance as Mr. Miyagi; he had previously been best known from his role on
Happy Days as Arnold, the owner of the local hamburger hangout.
ESPN's Bill Simmons called Morita's nomination "the 1984 equivalent of Mr. Belding from
Saved by the Bell being nominated for an Oscar in 2005". http://espn.go.com/page2/movies/s/simmons/020830.html Morita made several other movies including the three sequels one of which would help launch the career of two time Oscar winner
Hilary Swank; additionally, it launched the career of
Elisabeth Shue. It has also been credited for both advancing the art of bonsai and for renewing youth interest in
martial arts, with an emphasis on personal discipline rather than the often gratuitous and cinematic violence for which
martial arts films are known. The characters of Daniel and his mother are also noteworthy as positive media portrayals of Italian Americans.
This movie ranked number 31 on
Entertainment Weekly's list of the 50 Best High School Movies. The film retains an 88% freshness at Rotten Tomatoes.
Music
The original soundtrack album (containing songs from the movie) was released on
Casablanca Records. Of particular note is Joe Esposito (singer)'s "
You're the Best," featured during the tournament
Montage sequence near the end of the first film.
Bananarama's 1984 hit song "
Cruel Summer" also made its first U.S. appearance in the movie; however, it was excluded from the film's soundtrack album. Other songs featured in the film were left off the original soundtrack album as well, including "Please Answer Me," performed by Broken Edge, and "The Ride" performed by The Matches. Other than its in-film appearance during the beach scene when the Cobra Kai arrive by motorbike, "The Ride" has never been released on any known albums.
The instrumental scores for all four
Karate Kid films were composed by Bill Conti, orchestrated by Jack Eskew, and featured pan flute solos by
Gheorge Zamfir. On March 12, 2007,
Varèse Sarabande released all four
Karate Kid scores in a 4-CD box set limited to 2,500 copies worldwide. This was the first official release of the original recordings - before, bootleg CDs would sell for $40-$120.
Track Listing for 1984 Soundtrack
"Moment of Truth" (Survivor (band))
"(Bop Bop) On the Beach" (The Flirts, Jan and Dean)
"No Shelter" (Broken Edge)
"Young Hearts" (Commuter)
"(It Takes) Two to Tango" (Paul Davis (singer))
"Tough Love" (Shandi)
"Rhythm Man" (St. Regis)
"Feel the Night" (Baxter Robertson)
"Desire" (Gang of Four (band))
"You're the Best" (Joe Esposito (singer))
Track Listing for 2007 Varèse Sarabande Score
"Main Title" - 3:30
"Fight Nite" - 2:01
"A Bumpy Ride" - 1:37
"Dan Ducks Out" - 0:55
"Bonsai Tree" - 0:43
"Decorate the Gym" - 0:39
"Miyagi Rattles Bones" - 2:21
"Miyagi Intercedes" - 1:28
"On to Miyagi's" - 1:33
"The Pact" - 2:12
"Feel the Night" - 1:56
"Troubled Lovers" - 0:33
"Japanese Sander" - 1:26
"Paint the Fence" - 3:11
"Daniel Sees the Bird" - 2:38
"Fish & Train'" - 2:28
"Training Hard" - 2:29
"The Kiss" - 1:02
"Japanese Hand Clap" - 0:40
"No Mercy" - 0:23
"Daniel's Moment of Truth" - 1:52
Sequels
- The Karate Kid, Part II (1986)
- The Karate Kid, Part III (1989)
- The Next Karate Kid (1994) - Hilary Swank takes over as Mr. Miyagi's new student, Julie Pierce.
Remake
On September 27th, 2007,
IGN reported that
Sony Pictures is working toward a remake. Will Smith's Overbrook Entertainment and Jerry Weintraub will produce, with Smith's son, Jaden Smith, attached to star. It has also been reported (but not confirmed) that Will Smith will direct, and that Jackie Chan will portray Daniel's instructor, Mr. Miyagi.
Awards
- Academy Awards
- Nominated: Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor (Pat Morita)
- Golden Globe Awards
- Young Artist Awards
- Won: Best Family Motion Picture - Drama
- Won: Best Young Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture Musical, Comedy, Adventure or Drama (Elisabeth Shue)
- Nominated: Best Young Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture Musical, Comedy, Adventure or Drama (William Zabka)
- AFI 100 Years... series
References in popular culture
Perhaps the largest impact of the film was the introduction of the phrase "Wax on, wax off" into popular culture, often accompanied by a circular motion of each hand, a representation of the initial lesson taught by Miyagi, and the "Crane Kick".
- Chicago based band Sweep the Leg Johnny takes their name from this film, although that exact line does not appear in the film.
- Welsh rock band Lostprophets have a song named "Kobrakai", which was named in honor to the Cobra Kai dojo in the movie. The song is available on the band's 2001 debut album thefakesoundofprogress.
- The Mortal Kombat (series) character Kobra (Mortal Kombat) is a reference to the Cobra Kai dojo, right down to his karate uniform.
- LA-based band No More Kings released their single named "Sweep the Leg, Johnny"http://www.sweeptheleg.com/ after the famous line from the movie. The video for the song, written and directed by William Zabka, features a reunion of most of the original Karate Kid cast including Macchio, Zabka & Kove.
- The rock band Alli With An I took their name from a quote during the soccer tryout scene.
- In the television series Phoenix Nights, the backing band 'Les Alanos' write, score, direct and star in 'The Karate Kid: The Musical'.
- The name of the English band Fujiya & Miyagi comes from this movie.
- In Euro Trip, the "mime fight" in Paris contains two references
- Cooper at one point encourages Scotty to "sweep the leg, Scott!", a reference to the line "sweep the leg, Johnny!"
- The final scene of the fight has the mime preparing a "crane technique" maneuver identical to the one used by Daniel in The Karate Kid's last scene. The joke here, of course, is that where in the original film, Daniel's opponent walked into that maneuver in a clearly contrived fashion, Scotty simply does the obvious thing and kicks the mime in his exposed groin.
- The band "Take a Worm for a Walk Week"'s name may also be taken from a quote from one of the Cobras.
- Mr Miyagi's practising of the crane kick is referenced in the training scene of the Disney film Hercules.
- During an episode of Disney's The Proud Family, Penny begins taking karate lesson. Her Sensei has her clean his dojo before explaining the technique during a lesson. This is similar to the "Wax on, Wax off" technique.
- The video for the Filipino rock band Kamikazee's "Martyr Nyebera", itself a spoof of martial arts films, features parodies of characters from The Karate Kid, such as "Mr. Mayagiw" (Tagalog: "With cobwebs").
- A paper saying "Wax on, wax off" in Japanese was briefly seen on the 20th episode of Pani Poni Dash!, also the scene where Johnny washes the car was parodied on the forth episode by Mesousa.
- San Francisco post-hardcore band Karate High School have a song entitled "Sweep The Leg" which includes lines made famous by John Kreese: "fear does not exist in this dojo" et al.
- The song 'Kung Fu' by band Ash contains a reference to Mr. Miyagi in its lyrics.
Trivia
- Since the film was to be called The Karate Kid, Columbia Pictures had to get permission from DC Comics for usage of the name of the Legion of Super-Heroes comic book character Karate Kid (comics). Although the film version did not resemble the original comics creation, DC did get acknowledgement during the end credits.
- In Japan, The Karate Kid was retitled Best Kid (ベスト・キッド/Besuto kiddo).
- David Schwimmer, famous for his role in Friends (TV series), makes a quick walk-on appearance as a student.
- The first script originally called for Daniel LaRusso to have spina bifida.
- William Zabka was not really a trained karate master. He had, however, some experience in amateur wrestling.
- The All-Valley Tournament scenes were filmed on location at California State University, Northridge.
- During the middle to late 1980s B-movie boom in South Africa, a virtual copy of this movie was made and released, entitled Umfana We Karate, featuring a neighbourhood nerd who keeps getting punched around until a video game inspires him to stand tall and face the bullies.
- In an earlier version of the script, Bobby walks to Kreese after disabling Daniel, and removes his Cobra Kai sash and drops it to the floor, quitting the Cobras.
- The Cobra Kai dojo exists in real life, teaching Jiu Jitsu instead of karate. The head sensei is "renowned" grappling instructor Marc Laimon, who was the grappling coach for the first four seasons of the Ultimate Fighter, where he was known for getting into an argument with Season 4 Champ Matt Serra over Laimon's original BJJ Sensei Royce Gracie
- The "Crane kick" technique does not exist in any form of Karate or Kung Fu. It was specifically invented by Darryl Vidal - one of only three legitimate black belts on the cast or crew - for the film. Vidal has stated that the Crane kick has "very little practical application".
- Darryl Vidal can be seen in the movie as the semi-finalist in the All-Valley Tournament who was defeated by Johnny. Vidal was also Pat Morita's stunt double for the scene in which Mr. Miyagi is demonstrating the Crane technique standing on the post on the beach.
- Chuck Norris may not have been offered the role of John Kreese, but he did help the producers find the real martial artists that were used in the production (Vidal, Pat Johnson, who plays the All-Valley referee and is the film's fight coordinator, and Ron "Bobby" Thomas).
- Martin Kove really had a problem with being a bully in the film, and teaching kids to be bullies and cheat in competitive sports.
- When Daniel moves to Reseda from New Jersey, his apartment building is located on Saticoy St. and Tampa. And the vacant field where he is being chased is right next to the apartment building.
References
External links
- The Karate Kid WebSite
- Lane's The Karate Kid Page
{{Infobox Film| name = The Karate Kid| image = karate_kid.jpg| image_size =| caption =
The Karate Kid movie poster| director =
John G. Avildsen
[R.J. Louis (executive producer)
Bud S. Smith (associate producer)]| narrator =| starring =
Ralph MacchioPat MoritaElisabeth Shue
Martin Kove
William Zabka
Randee Heller| cinematography = [James Crabe
[Bud S. Smith| released = [June 22,
1984 in film| runtime = 127 min.| country = U.S.| language =
English language| budget =| gross = $90,815,558 | preceded_by =| followed_by =
The Karate Kid, Part II]
John G. Avildsen film starring
Ralph Macchio and
Pat Morita. It is a martial arts movie and an "
underdog (competition)" story much in the model of a previous Avildsen smash, the 1976
boxing picture
Rocky. It was a massive commercial hit and retains a popular following to this day. It also garnered a favorable critical reception, even earning
Pat Morita an
Academy Awards nomination for
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
Tagline
He taught him the secret to karate lies in the mind and heart. Not in the hands.
Plot
Teenager Daniel LaRusso (
Ralph Macchio) moves with his mother (Randee Heller) from
Newark, New Jersey to
Reseda, California, (San Fernando Valley), in search of a new beginning after the
death of Daniel's father. The handyman of their apartment building is a kindly and humble
Ryukyuans immigrant named Mr. Miyagi (
Pat Morita).
The last night of summer, Daniel and his new friends from school are at the beach, where a girl named Ali Mills (
Elisabeth Shue) catches his attention. Her ex-boyfriend, Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka), and his friends accost Ali. Daniel attempts to intervene and ultimately fights with Johnny. Although he knows some
karate, learned at the YMCA in New Jersey and from books, Daniel is defeated by Johnny, who is better trained.
Unwittingly, Daniel has made an enemy of the Cobra Kai karate dojo's best student. The Cobra Kai dojo teaches an unethical, macho form of martial arts, fueled by the credo "Strike first. Strike hard. No mercy." Johnny and his crony thereafter torment Daniel at every opportunity. When Daniel retaliates with a prank at a
Halloween dance party, he is pursued by Johnny and four of his Cobra Kai friends (dressed in skeleton costumes), who proceed to beat him until he can barely stand. Mr. Miyagi appears out of nowhere and rescues Daniel by defeating all five Cobra Kai students in a surprising display of karate. Awed, Daniel asks Mr. Miyagi to be his teacher, or sensei. Mr. Miyagi initially refuses, but later realizes that his intervention will result in Johnny and his friends taking further revenge on Daniel. He agrees to go with Daniel to the Cobra Kai dojo to see if they can resolve the
conflict.
Mr. Miyagi and Daniel confront the
sensei of the Cobra Kai dojo, John Kreese (Martin Kove), to stop the harassment. However, Kreese, a Vietnam veteran, is a vicious fighter who sneers at the concepts of mercy and restraint, and has indoctrinated this
philosophy into his students. Mr. Miyagi announces that Daniel will enter the “All Valley Karate Tournament”, where Cobra Kai students can fight Daniel on equal terms. Mr. Miyagi also requests that the bullying stop while the boy trains. Kreese orders his students to leave Daniel alone, but threatens that if he does not show up for the tournament, the harassment will resume and Miyagi will also become a target.
Mr. Miyagi becomes Daniel's teacher and, slowly, a surrogate father figure. He begins Daniel's training by having him perform laborious chores such as
wax many cars, sanding a wooden floor, painting a fence, and painting the house encircled by the fence. Eventually, Daniel becomes frustrated, believing that he has learned nothing of karate, whereupon Mr. Miyagi reveals that Daniel has unknowingly been learning defensive blocks, through the various
arm movements learned doing the chores.
It is revealed that Mr. Miyagi lost his wife and son in childbirth at the Manzanar Japanese internment camp while he was serving overseas with the U.S. Army during
World War II. The loss of his
family and Daniel's loss of his father further strengthens the father-son surrogacy. Daniel also discovers that the outwardly peace and serene Mr. Miyagi was a recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor for
hero against German forces in
Europe. A brief flashback by Mr. Miyagi implies that the decoration was for killing many Germans and details are not otherwise specified.
As the training continues, Mr. Miyagi demonstrates a form of pain suppression on Daniel when the latter becomes sore from the ferocious exercises of training. Mr. Miyagi also instructs Daniel in various techniques, including the famous "Crane Kick." Through the teaching, Daniel learns not only karate, but also important life lessons, such as the importance of
balance. This is reflected by the
belief that martial arts training is as much about training the
spirit as the
body. Daniel applies the life lessons that Mr. Miyagi has taught him to strengthen his relationship with Ali.
At the tournament, Daniel surprises everybody by remaining intact until the semifinals. Kreese instructs Daniel's semifinal opponent, (Cobra Kai student Bobby), to disable Daniel with an illegal attack to the knee. Bobby resists, claiming "I can beat this guy!", but Kreese insists that Bobby put Daniel "out of commission." With Daniel injured and unable to continue, Mr. Miyagi assures him he has already proven himself. However, Daniel believes that if he does not continue, his tormentors will have gotten the best of him. He therefore persuades Mr. Miyagi to use the special pain suppression technique to allow him to finish the tournament. As Johnny is about to be declared the winner by default, Daniel steps into the ring. Kreese orders his student to fight without mercy, famously telling Johnny to "sweep the leg," targeting Daniel's previous injury. Johnny blanches at the order, knowing that he can win with such an unethical move, but wants to do so fairly in the ring. He reluctantly obeys Kreese and does what is ordered, knocking Daniel to the floor. Though in great pain, Daniel refuses to stay down.
In the final scene, Daniel and Johnny are tied, both one point away from victory. Daniel, barely able to stand, assumes the "Crane Kick" stance, and delivers a kick squarely to Johnny's chin to win the tournament. Johnny acquires respect for Daniel as a result. Without malice, he presents the trophy to his opponent, while Mr. Miyagi looks on proudly.
Cast
- Ralph Macchio as Daniel LaRusso
- Pat Morita as Mr. Kesuke Miyagi
- Elisabeth Shue as Ali Mills
- Martin Kove as John Kreese
- Randee Heller as Lucille LaRusso
- William Zabka as Johnny Lawrence
- Ron Thomas as Bobby
- Rob Garrison as Tommy
- Chad McQueen as Dutch
- Tony O'Dell as Jimmy
- Isarel Jurabe as Freddy Fernandez
- Larry B. Scott as Jerry
- William Bassett as Mr. Mills
- Pat E. Johnson as Referee
It has been reported that Chuck Norris turned down the role of John Kreese because he did not want to portray a character that reinforced a negative
stereotype of martial arts. However, Norris disputed this story during a February 9 2006 appearance on
The Adam Carolla Show. There Norris insisted that he was not offered the role, and that he was already acting in leading roles at that time anyway . Additionally, according to the special edition DVD commentary, the studio originally wanted the role of Mr. Miyagi to be played by Toshiro Mifune, but writer Robert Mark Kamen was opposed to that casting choice.
Mako (actor) was also considered for the role of Mr. Miyagi, but was not available due to prior commitments to film the
Conan the Barbarian sequel,
Conan the Destroyer
Impact
The Karate Kid spawned an entire franchise of related items and memorabilia, such as action figures, head bands, posters, T-shirts, The Karate Kid (video game), etc. A short-lived The Karate Kid (TV series) spin-off aired on NBC in 1989. The film also had three sequels, and it launched the career of Macchio, who would turn into a teen idol featured on the covers of magazines such as
Tiger Beat. It vitalized the acting career of Morita, who was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Academy Awards for his performance as Mr. Miyagi; he had previously been best known from his role on
Happy Days as Arnold, the owner of the local hamburger hangout.
ESPN's Bill Simmons called Morita's nomination "the 1984 equivalent of Mr. Belding from
Saved by the Bell being nominated for an Oscar in 2005". http://espn.go.com/page2/movies/s/simmons/020830.html Morita made several other movies including the three sequels one of which would help launch the career of two time Oscar winner
Hilary Swank; additionally, it launched the career of Elisabeth Shue. It has also been credited for both advancing the art of
bonsai and for renewing youth interest in martial arts, with an emphasis on personal discipline rather than the often gratuitous and cinematic violence for which
martial arts films are known. The characters of Daniel and his mother are also noteworthy as positive media portrayals of
Italian Americans.
This movie ranked number 31 on
Entertainment Weekly's list of the 50 Best High School Movies. The film retains an 88% freshness at Rotten Tomatoes.
Music
The original soundtrack album (containing songs from the movie) was released on Casablanca Records. Of particular note is Joe Esposito (singer)'s "
You're the Best," featured during the tournament Montage sequence near the end of the first film. Bananarama's 1984 hit song "Cruel Summer" also made its first U.S. appearance in the movie; however, it was excluded from the film's soundtrack album. Other songs featured in the film were left off the original soundtrack album as well, including "Please Answer Me," performed by Broken Edge, and "The Ride" performed by The Matches. Other than its in-film appearance during the beach scene when the Cobra Kai arrive by motorbike, "The Ride" has never been released on any known albums.
The instrumental scores for all four
Karate Kid films were composed by Bill Conti, orchestrated by Jack Eskew, and featured pan flute solos by Gheorge Zamfir. On
March 12,
2007,
Varèse Sarabande released all four
Karate Kid scores in a 4-CD box set limited to 2,500 copies worldwide. This was the first official release of the original recordings - before, bootleg CDs would sell for $40-$120.
Track Listing for 1984 Soundtrack
"Moment of Truth" (Survivor (band))
"(Bop Bop) On the Beach" (The Flirts, Jan and Dean)
"No Shelter" (Broken Edge)
"Young Hearts" (Commuter)
"(It Takes) Two to Tango" (Paul Davis (singer))
"Tough Love" (Shandi)
"Rhythm Man" (St. Regis)
"Feel the Night" (Baxter Robertson)
"Desire" (Gang of Four (band))
"You're the Best" (Joe Esposito (singer))
Track Listing for 2007 Varèse Sarabande Score
"Main Title" - 3:30
"Fight Nite" - 2:01
"A Bumpy Ride" - 1:37
"Dan Ducks Out" - 0:55
"Bonsai Tree" - 0:43
"Decorate the Gym" - 0:39
"Miyagi Rattles Bones" - 2:21
"Miyagi Intercedes" - 1:28
"On to Miyagi's" - 1:33
"The Pact" - 2:12
"Feel the Night" - 1:56
"Troubled Lovers" - 0:33
"Japanese Sander" - 1:26
"Paint the Fence" - 3:11
"Daniel Sees the Bird" - 2:38
"Fish & Train'" - 2:28
"Training Hard" - 2:29
"The Kiss" - 1:02
"Japanese Hand Clap" - 0:40
"No Mercy" - 0:23
"Daniel's Moment of Truth" - 1:52
Sequels
Remake
On September 27th, 2007, IGN reported that Sony Pictures is working toward a remake.
Will Smith's
Overbrook Entertainment and
Jerry Weintraub will produce, with Smith's son, Jaden Smith, attached to star. It has also been reported (but not confirmed) that Will Smith will direct, and that Jackie Chan will portray Daniel's instructor, Mr. Miyagi.
Awards
- Academy Awards
- Golden Globe Awards
- Young Artist Awards
- Won: Best Family Motion Picture - Drama
- Won: Best Young Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture Musical, Comedy, Adventure or Drama (Elisabeth Shue)
- Nominated: Best Young Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture Musical, Comedy, Adventure or Drama (William Zabka)
- AFI 100 Years... series
- AFI's 100 Years... 100 Cheers (100 Most Inspiring Movies) - #98
References in popular culture
Perhaps the largest impact of the film was the introduction of the phrase "Wax on, wax off" into popular culture, often accompanied by a circular motion of each hand, a representation of the initial lesson taught by Miyagi, and the "Crane Kick".
- Chicago based band Sweep the Leg Johnny takes their name from this film, although that exact line does not appear in the film.
- Welsh rock band Lostprophets have a song named "Kobrakai", which was named in honor to the Cobra Kai dojo in the movie. The song is available on the band's 2001 debut album thefakesoundofprogress.
- The Mortal Kombat (series) character Kobra (Mortal Kombat) is a reference to the Cobra Kai dojo, right down to his karate uniform.
- LA-based band No More Kings released their single named "Sweep the Leg, Johnny"http://www.sweeptheleg.com/ after the famous line from the movie. The video for the song, written and directed by William Zabka, features a reunion of most of the original Karate Kid cast including Macchio, Zabka & Kove.
- The rock band Alli With An I took their name from a quote during the soccer tryout scene.
- In the television series Phoenix Nights, the backing band 'Les Alanos' write, score, direct and star in 'The Karate Kid: The Musical'.
- The name of the English band Fujiya & Miyagi comes from this movie.
- In Euro Trip, the "mime fight" in Paris contains two references
- Cooper at one point encourages Scotty to "sweep the leg, Scott!", a reference to the line "sweep the leg, Johnny!"
- The final scene of the fight has the mime preparing a "crane technique" maneuver identical to the one used by Daniel in The Karate Kid's last scene. The joke here, of course, is that where in the original film, Daniel's opponent walked into that maneuver in a clearly contrived fashion, Scotty simply does the obvious thing and kicks the mime in his exposed groin.
- The band "Take a Worm for a Walk Week"'s name may also be taken from a quote from one of the Cobras.
- Mr Miyagi's practising of the crane kick is referenced in the training scene of the Disney film Hercules.
- During an episode of Disney's The Proud Family, Penny begins taking karate lesson. Her Sensei has her clean his dojo before explaining the technique during a lesson. This is similar to the "Wax on, Wax off" technique.
- The video for the Filipino rock band Kamikazee's "Martyr Nyebera", itself a spoof of martial arts films, features parodies of characters from The Karate Kid, such as "Mr. Mayagiw" (Tagalog: "With cobwebs").
- A paper saying "Wax on, wax off" in Japanese was briefly seen on the 20th episode of Pani Poni Dash!, also the scene where Johnny washes the car was parodied on the forth episode by Mesousa.
- San Francisco post-hardcore band Karate High School have a song entitled "Sweep The Leg" which includes lines made famous by John Kreese: "fear does not exist in this dojo" et al.
- The song 'Kung Fu' by band Ash contains a reference to Mr. Miyagi in its lyrics.
Trivia
- Since the film was to be called The Karate Kid, Columbia Pictures had to get permission from DC Comics for usage of the name of the Legion of Super-Heroes comic book character Karate Kid (comics). Although the film version did not resemble the original comics creation, DC did get acknowledgement during the end credits.
- In Japan, The Karate Kid was retitled Best Kid (ベスト・キッド/Besuto kiddo).
- David Schwimmer, famous for his role in Friends (TV series), makes a quick walk-on appearance as a student.
- The first script originally called for Daniel LaRusso to have spina bifida.
- William Zabka was not really a trained karate master. He had, however, some experience in amateur wrestling.
- The All-Valley Tournament scenes were filmed on location at California State University, Northridge.
- During the middle to late 1980s B-movie boom in South Africa, a virtual copy of this movie was made and released, entitled Umfana We Karate, featuring a neighbourhood nerd who keeps getting punched around until a video game inspires him to stand tall and face the bullies.
- In an earlier version of the script, Bobby walks to Kreese after disabling Daniel, and removes his Cobra Kai sash and drops it to the floor, quitting the Cobras.
- The Cobra Kai dojo exists in real life, teaching Jiu Jitsu instead of karate. The head sensei is "renowned" grappling instructor Marc Laimon, who was the grappling coach for the first four seasons of the Ultimate Fighter, where he was known for getting into an argument with Season 4 Champ Matt Serra over Laimon's original BJJ Sensei Royce Gracie
- The "Crane kick" technique does not exist in any form of Karate or Kung Fu. It was specifically invented by Darryl Vidal - one of only three legitimate black belts on the cast or crew - for the film. Vidal has stated that the Crane kick has "very little practical application".
- Darryl Vidal can be seen in the movie as the semi-finalist in the All-Valley Tournament who was defeated by Johnny. Vidal was also Pat Morita's stunt double for the scene in which Mr. Miyagi is demonstrating the Crane technique standing on the post on the beach.
- Chuck Norris may not have been offered the role of John Kreese, but he did help the producers find the real martial artists that were used in the production (Vidal, Pat Johnson, who plays the All-Valley referee and is the film's fight coordinator, and Ron "Bobby" Thomas).
- Martin Kove really had a problem with being a bully in the film, and teaching kids to be bullies and cheat in competitive sports.
- When Daniel moves to Reseda from New Jersey, his apartment building is located on Saticoy St. and Tampa. And the vacant field where he is being chased is right next to the apartment building.
References
External links
- The Karate Kid WebSite
- Lane's The Karate Kid Page
The Karate Kid (1984)
Tagline: Only the 'Old One' could teach him the secrets of the masters. more
The Karate Kid - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Karate Kid is a 1984 John G. Avildsen film starring Ralph Macchio, Pat Morita and Elisabeth Shue. It is a martial arts movie and an "underdog" story much in the mold of a ...
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Offers brand name products. Also contains school listing, events calendar, FAQ, and related information.
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Fan site discussing many aspects of the movie, the people who created, and starred in it. Multimedia, information, and other details.
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