MovieRob’s Birthday Bash of Favorites 2022 (#1 of 49) – The Karate Kid (1984) – Encore Review 3

January is my birthday month, so I decided that I would try and do something quite unique and special for this milestone in my life. I will be turning 48, so I decided to watch 49 (48+1 for good luck) of my all time favorite movies in a random order over the course of this month. I have reviewed every one of these films already, but I will now give new perspectives on them all. Every one of these films received a 10/10 scoring from me. Some of these reviews will contain spoilers so if you have never seen them before, I recommend that you read some of my previous reviews of the film that are spoiler free before reading on…

Hope you enjoy!

This is film #1 of the 49.

Let’s start with…

“Get him a body bag! Yeah! ” – Tommy

Initial Viewing Memories – This is a film that I recall seeing as a kid of 10 in the theater and was so inspired by the story and characters because it left such an indelible mark on me from such a young age.

Number of Times Seen – Too many to count (Theater in ’84, cable, video, DVD, 16 Nov 2014, 21 Jul 2017, 1 Oct 2020 and 1 Jan 2022)

Link to original review –Here, Here and Here

Brief Synopsis – A teenager runs into problems with local bullies after he and his mother move from New Jersey to California.

My Take on it – Such an inspirational movie!

Ralph Macchio is great in the lead role and helps make his character so sympathetic the whole way through.

The ingenious way that martial arts is depicted and taught here is so fascinating to watch no matter how often this movie is viewed.

the fight scenes are superbly choreographed and that helps add so much to the tension as things move along.

The 80’s music helps keep things so enjoyable to watch unfold the whole way through.

Pat Morita is unbelievable in the role of teacher/mentor and this is by far the best performance of his career because he makes things so much more powerful as the truth of everything slowly becomes clear.

Anyone watching this film will wish they had this kind of teacher in their lives and thankfully we will all always have Miyagi to look up to.

The film’s 3 sequels aren’t as enjoyable or poignant as this film was and even after nearly 40 years it still remains so iconic in the way that the story is depicted.

Highly Highly Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – The yellow classic automobile that Daniel polishes in the famous “wax-on/wax-off” training scene, then later offered by Mr. Miyagi as Daniel’s birthday gift, was actually given to Ralph Macchio by the producer, and he still owns it. The car is a 1948 Ford Super De Luxe. (From IMDB)

Rating – Oscar Worthy (10/10) (no change from original review)