In John G. Avildsen's THE KARATE KID, Daniel (Ralph Macchio) and his mother (Randee Heller) move from New Jersey to Southern California, where he's not too keen about his new home--until he meets...
12-year-old Dre Parker could've been the most popular kid in Detroit,
but his mother's latest career move has landed him in China. Dre
immediately falls for his classmate Mei Ying - and the feeling is mutual
- but cultural differences make such a friendship impossible. Even
worse, Dre's feelings make an enemy of the class bully, Cheng. In the
land of kung fu, Dre knows only a little karate, and Cheng puts "the
karate kid" on the floor with ease. With no friends in a strange land,
Dre has nowhere to turn but maintenance man Mr. Han, who is secretly a
master of kung fu. As Han teaches Dre that kung fu is not about punches
and parries, but maturity and calm, Dre realizes that facing down the
bullies will be the fight of his life.
In John G. Avildsen's THE KARATE KID, Daniel (Ralph Macchio) and his
mother (Randee Heller) move from New Jersey to Southern California,
where he's not too keen about his new home--until he meets... In John G.
Avildsen's THE KARATE KID, Daniel (Ralph Macchio) and his mother
(Randee Heller) move from New Jersey to Southern California, where he's
not too keen about his new home--until he meets Ali (Elizabeth Shue),
an attractive girl who seems to like him. But trouble looms when Ali's
ex-boyfriend (William Zabka) and his gang of ruffians start tormenting
Daniel. One day, as Daniel is suffering a beating at the hands of these
louts, Mr. Miyagi (Noriyuki "Pat" Morita), an elderly Japanese
handyman, comes to his rescue. To Daniel's amazement, Miyagi manages to
take down the whole group all by himself using karate. Daniel begs to
learn this ancient martial art, and soon Miyagi begins the boy's
training, teaching Daniel that there is more to karate than fighting.
Through a series of lessons, the wise mentor instills a sense of honor
and nobility in his young pupil while preparing him for the ultimate
karate showdown. However, as Daniel studies the discipline and art of
karate, his enemies are learning a dirtier kind of fighting from Kreese
(Martin Kove), a cold-blooded ex-marine. Ultimately, the boys will
fight to the finish in the All Valley Karate Championship in a rousing
and triumphant finale. Morita is a gem as the elderly father figure
Miyagi, giving the character warmth, wisdom, and comic charm. Macchio's
underdog character inspired an entire generation to run out and join
the nearest karate school while chanting "wax on, wax off."
