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 - It's A WeaknessI'm not proud of it, but I will confess: I've seen THE KARATE KID more than once. And because of this film's adolescent annoyance, I really have no explanation. I truly believe Ralph Macchio has yet to shave; Pat Morita ("Wax on, wax off,") should have stayed on the set of "Happy Days"; blond William Zabka is about as menacing a bully as a yapping chihuahua; and Elisabeth Shue appeared in this film long before she hit her glorious sensuous stride. The haircuts are a riot, the music relentlessly myopic, and while watching this campy caper I have the unmistakable taste of bubblegum haunting my mouth. Yet I continue to take in this sappy marshmallow yarn--a story about a displaced (and annoying) New Jersey teen suddenly transplanted to the left coast with its yuppie culture and peach-fuzzed Cobra Kais. Our young hero must learn to defend himself, he must learn karate, and what better way to absorb the martial arts than under the careful tutelage of an eccentric Japanese maintenance man? Hey, it works for me. I can't explain it--maybe I'm a glutton for hokey--but this is a feel-good story that will put a smirk on your mug. Plus THE KARATE KID gives us at least two cinematic legends: the shower curtain costume and the infamous, "Sweep the leg." That's worth two extra viewings right there. --D. Mikels, Author, Walk-On Rating:  - A BLIND BLESSINGTHIS WAS AN AWSOME MOVIE. I NAMED THE TITLE OF MY REVIEW "A BLIND BLESSING" JUST BECAUSE DANIEL DID NOT SEE THE MEANING OF WHY HIS TRAINER HAD HIM TO DO ALL OF THOSE THINGS, SUCH AS WASHING AND WAXING, PAINTING, AND ETC., BUT HE FINALLY SEEN WHY HE HAD TO DO ALL OF THOSE THINGS, AND IN THE END IT PAID OFF FOR HIM. WHEN WE GO THROUGH THINGS WE DON'T ALWAYS KNOW WHY WE ARE GOING THROUGH THEM, BUT IN THE END GOD WORKS EVERYTHING OUT, THEN WE WILL FINALLY SEE WHY WE HAD TO GO THROUGH WHAT WE DID. MY SAYING IS, "WE HAVE TO GO THROUGH THIS, TO GET TO THIS". Rating:  - Transfer qualityPlease note...this review is for the quality of the transfer of the original film to DVD. It is awful! It almost seems they used a low resolution camcorder and recorded it from a movie theater screen. The thousands of black specks in the blue sky at the very beginning of the movie were very obtrusive. If you have a high resolution television it will only make the inferior quality of this DVD more noticeable. Rating: - [4.5] More than just karateI have loved this movie ever since I began watching it as a kid. After seeing all four Karate Kid films, the original is still the very best. This should not be viewed as an action movie for martial arts excitement. While the film contains that, its is quite mild and limited, focusing mostly as a drama with a terrific story. A film for all ages and families, though cheesy at times, there are elements of the film that will remind us of the difficulties of growing up through school. Daniel Laruso is new to the L.A. area, who traveled across country with his mother to settle in their new apartment. The new kid in school, Daniel finds it quickly frustrating with bullies surrounding him every instant, and a love interest in a girl who was once one of the bullies' former lovers. After getting beat up over and over, Daniel has enough and wants to move back home. Fortunately, an older and wise handyman named Mr. Miyagi finds out about Daniel's dilemma, and the two spend most of the film bonding in a special light, despite their unique differences. Daniel not only learns about karate, but the true meaning of karate, and the keys to finding balance in one's life. Cheesy for today's standards, but still worth a watch, as we can all relate to growing up in a similar high school scenario of difficulties. Though not an extremely famous list of cast names, Pat Morita, Ralph Machio, Elisabeth Shue and Martin Kove will always be most famous for their roles in this film. Pat Morita as Mr. Miyagi has made a profound impact in movie history. Though passed away recently, he will always be remembered as the famous "wax on, wax off" man. Though Martin Kove went on to play in many B-action martial arts movies, it is Karate Kid where he got to shine the most. Elisabeth Shue plays Ali, Daniel's love interest, and surprisingly - make for a decent 80's high school couple, with nice chemistry in their roles. Karate Kid is an 80's classic, one of the best films to come out of that decade. This is proof that something from the 80's is still worthwhile. This is a must-see for anyone who loves a great fun-filled story. Acting - 4.5 Action - 3.5 Characters - 4.5 Story - 5 Overall - 4.5 Rating: - This entertaining movie offers wonderful life lessons for young people!The Karate Kid, starring Ralph Macchio, Pat Morita, Martin Kove I had watched this entertaining movie during the late eighties or probably the early nineties when it was first released to the movie theatres. Subsequently, I had watched it several times on cable television, as well from videos. I had recently watched it again from a DVD, as I thought it offered wonderful life lessons. First of all, it had a very straight-forward story. A young boy, Danny (Ralph Macchio) & his mother had relocated from the East to Los Angeles. In search of new friends, he bumped into a bunch of ruffians from a local martial arts school. Naturally, there was also this beautiful lady (played by Elizabeth Shue), whose deliberate presence in the movie seemed to complicate matters for him. During one painful encounter with the ruffians, he was beaten up, but luckily was eventually rescued by an elderly handyman, Miyagi (Pat Morita), working in his apartment complex. Miyagi seemed to be well versed in unarmed combat. Intrigued, Danny wanted to learn martial arts from Miyagi, even though he discovered than the old man was more adept in clipping bonsai trees & catching flies with chopsticks. Miyagi reluctantly took Danny on & immediately delegated him to carry out a host of domestic chores, like sanding the floor decks, cleaning/polishing the cars & painting the fences. Unwittingly, they sparked off some sort of a father-son relationship. These apparently inconsequential activities certainly reminded me of those compulsory routines, like sweeping floors, chopping wood & carrying water, that were often carried out by young disciplines of the Shaolin Temple in ancient China. Danny was obviously very disappointed. The story continued with Danny's quest to take part in the local martial arts tournament. What I like about this movie is the valuable lessons it offers to young people in search of their personal vision. In this case, Danny wanted to become a martial arts champion. For an instructor, Miyagi was obviously an unorthodox master. He taught Danny, to his chagrin, how to envision success by asking him to trim a bonsai tree. The old man said: "Just trim the tree!" Danny replied, "What if I don't do it right?" The old man told him: " Close your eyes, picture a tree, & then, as soon as you have the tree, think of nothing else. Open your eyes & trim the bonsai tree to match the picture." Once again, Danny replied: "How do I know it is going to be right?" The old man responded gleefully: "If it comes from inside you, it is right!" It began to dawn on Danny that the real secret to martial arts laid in the mind & the heart, & not in the fists. Once he realised the lessons he had learned from Miyagi - the hard way -, Danny became empowered & went on to beat the hell out of his seemingly stronger opponent in the martial arts tournament. The fight sequences, especially the ending segment, in the movie were beautifully as well spectacularly choreographed, but the principal message of the movie was very clear: The compelling vision of where you want to go & the vivid image of achievement come from deep inside you!
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