Set 3 years after the series finale of Cobra Kai, Karate Kid: Legends tells the story of Li Fong, a kung fu prodigy from China who has to relocate to New York due his mums new job. Unfortunately, this means leaving his great Uncle Han behind – a father-like figure who has been training him for many years. Once in the big apple, Li meets Mia and her dad Victor, a pizza restaurant owner who was a past boxing champion that's now in trouble with some pretty mean loan sharks. In an attempt to win Mia's heart, Li agrees to train up her father so that he can take part in an illegal fight that will help pay off his debt. Unfortunately, at the same time, Li also has to deal with Mia's jealous ex-boyfriend Conor, one of New York's best karate fighters who happens to have one hell of an attitude. After a few run-ins, Li is challenged by Conor to face off against him in the Five Boroughs fighting tournament, but after the defeat of Mia's father not wanting to disappoint his mother, Li refuses. But as fate would have it, Li's great Uncle Han soon arrives from China and agrees to help him win the tournament – this time with a little extra help from a special someone who had once been in the very same situation!

 

It has been 15 years since the last Karate Kid movie – 15 whole years, which is just crazy to think! And I really enjoyed it. Director Harald Zwart did a fine job, as did young Jaden Smith and everyone involved, but – naturally – for me, it was all about my hero Jackie Chan. Many questioned if he could bring that special kind of something that Pat Morita had brought to the original series as Mr. Miyagi, and I'd like to say he did and quite a bit more. Regardless of it's few flaws such as Jackie teaching kung fu when it was called The Karate Kid, cliched Hollywood moments, or die-hard fans' comparisons to the original and refusal to accept it as it's own piece, I still found the Will Smith produced remake to be one of Jackie's most polished and best Hollywood outings where he delivered a perfect and emotional performance in a role that was absolutely made for him at this stage of his life. Regardless, The Karate Kid (2010) was a success and did pretty well at the box-office and home video on release...

 

So why didn't we see a sequel much sooner?

 

I'm sure there are many reasons, but finally we have Karate Kid: Legends – a hugely entertaining sequel that sees the return of Jackie Chan as Mr. Han and the OG karate kid himself, Ralph Macchio, returning as Daniel LaRusso – his first appearance in a Karate Kid movie in over 35 years which was super exciting. Now, I know he has been acting pretty much since his groundbreaking role in 1984, and recently found new fame with the next generation in the hugely successful Cobra Kai (2018) series, but seeing him right up there on the big screen – next to Jackie Chan in a Karate Kid movie – was as incredible as it was emotional. Of course, in learning that Mr. Han was indeed a very close friend of the late Mr. Miyagi, now reveals that the 2010 remake of The Karate Kid is no longer just a remake! It is, in fact, as is this, part of the same universe just as the originals are. This means that – should any further sequels arise in the near future – those characters played by Jaden Smith or even Hilary Swank at that, could certainly make an appearance somewhere along the way. I mean, look who we got in that closing scene as a cameo.

 

Compared to his role as Mr. Han in the 2010 film, Jackie's portrayal of the martial-arts master is very different this time around. No longer is he the old man you feel sorry for, depressed over the loss of his family and hiding in the shadows – no, fifteen years later, this Mr. Han has very much found himself again. Now running a huge and successful martial-arts school in China, Han almost comes across as a younger version of himself. He is much funnier, more determined, and full of surprises about his past. Of course, a lot of time has passed since we last saw him, so these changes can be acceptable in the grand scheme of things. But this time, he definitely feels more – well, Jackie Chan. The charm is there, as are the cool and creative moves with that typical splash of fight comedy we've all come to love from this living legend. But it must be said that Karate Kid Legends is not a Jackie Chan movie by any means – that pleasure goes to the fantastic Ben Wang; a young Chinese-American who has been climbing the ranks pretty fast in the last five years.

 

I first caught Ben in the Disney+ sitcom American Born Chinese (2023) where he had the chance to star alongside Hong Kong greats like Michelle Yeoh and Daniel Wu, as well as the great Ke Huy Quan and Chin Han respectively. He was cute, he was funny, but he didn't really get to bust any moves. Here, however, Ben Wang is next level. After being selected as the next Karate Kid, Ben spent a few months of martial arts training before production began, and for his debut action role I was highly impressed. Proving that he was indeed the right man picked from hundreds, Wang charms, fights and entertains us with ease – and fight he does. Delivering moves that hark back to Hong Kong action movies from the late 80s, Ben Wang wows with his agility and kung fu ability, and along with his comic timing, cheeky charm and dramatic performance, undoubtedly steals the show. After his performance here in Karate Kid: Legends, I can only hope that we see Ben Wang in more action roles in the coming years of his career. Of course, his character of Li Fong did have two great martial arts masters guiding him. The aforementioned Mr. Han, and the original Karate Kid himself, Daniel LaRusso...

 

Played once again by the fantastic Ralph Macchio, who found new success in the revival of his character with the creation of the Cobra Kai (2018) show, his appearance here was a very welcome addition to the story – especially seeing him alongside Jackie Chan. In fact, Jackie has since stated how the original Karate Kid (1984) was a favourite of his, and how working with him was a dream come true. But for me, the connection of everything leading up to this was what made it so special. Opening with a scene from The Karate Kid 2 (1986) where Mr. Miyagi explains to Daniel his past with the Han family in China (obviously altered to suit the story), and later again when Mr. Han visits Daniel in Miyagi's old home – these two scenes, along with LaRusso's line in spreading the legacy of his sensai, paid such a homage to the late Pat Morita – just as past episodes of Cobra Kai had done – it brought a tear to my eye. While he gets to trade some moves with Jackie Chan during training sessions, Ralph Macchio is really just there for nostalgic purposes as much as he is a big part of connecting this whole universe together. Not only that, but as with Cobra Kai, Macchio also serves as one of the executive producers which was great to see. It's hard to believe this guy is just about touching retirement age already!

 

Of course, this trio of talent are joined by a great supporting cast who all prove to be entertaining in their own way. These include Sadie Stanley as Mia, a television actress who looks great and offers a great performance. Her dad Victor is played by popular US actor Joshua Jackson who really surprised me in this role, and actually became one of my favourite characters of the movie. Agents of Shield (2013) star, Ming Na Wen, appears as Li Fong's stern mother – niece to Jackie Chan's Mr. Han – who has a strong reason for removing her son from the world of martial arts. The big enemy of the piece, Mia's ex-boyfriend Conor, is played wonderfully by the handsome Aramis Knight who I first saw kicking ass in the fantastic Into The Badlands (2015) – a show that had him star alongside the great Daniel Wu which brings together another connection in this film. As mentioned, Ben Wang had starred with him in American Born Chinese (2023), but Daniel Wu was in fact a protege of Jackie Chan's – starring with him in films such as Gen-X Cops (1999), Around The World In 80 Days (2004), The Twins Effect 2 (2004), New Police Story (2004), Shinjuku Incident (2009), and others.

 

And finally, there are the fight scenes – fast paced, exciting, wonderfully choreographed, and sometimes brutal. While Jackie, who performed the majority of his own moves and stunts except for the more complicated moments – again, we need to remember how old this guy really is - no doubt got involved with the fight choreography, these were mainly handled under the watchful eyes of fight directors Xu Xiang Yang and Zhang Peng an interesting pair who worked together on the Chinese fantasy movie Asura in 2018 – the directorial debut of the latter and a film that was criticised so much upon release that it was pulled from cinemas after 3 days – although I really can't understand why. Between them, the pair have worked as second unit directors, stunt performers, and choreographers on films and TV shows such as The Last Samurai, Rush Hour 3, Kick Ass, Scott Pilgrim Vs The World, The Wrath Of Vajra, Shang Chi & The Legend Of The Ten Rings, The Marvels, Kingsman, Ant-Man, Wonder Woman, American Born Chinese, and much more. Here, they successfully deliver some incredible moments of fight action that will even keep the most hardened Hong Kong film fan happy, with everyone involved doing a great job as both Zhang and Xu highlight each of their talents and abilities.

 

Karate Kid Legends is an interesting entry to this much loved series. It's very modern, naturally taking some cues from Cobra Kai (including the teen drama), and splashes animated title cards up on-screen as if it were an episode of the MCU's Ms. Marvel (2022) – but that's really not a bad thing. It's all about today's audience, and to be honest, it's a very different one to that of 1984's. Maybe it's because Karate Kid: Legends is British director Jonathan Entwistle feature film debut after directing TV shows such as The End Of The Fucking World (2017), Vanity Fair (2018), I'm Not Okay With This (2020), and Hello Tomorrow (2023). An interesting choice considering, but I feel he did a pretty good job in bringing a smile to my face, a tear to my eye, and filling me with happiness and more importantly, nostalgia. Yes, it may not be perfect but it works. It entertains, it makes you laugh, has great fight action, and has Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio lighting up the screen together. All in all, Karate Kid: Legends is a lot of fun and well worth checking out! (4/5) George @invincibleasia

 

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