Karate Kid: Legends (Christian Movie Review)

Karate Kid: Legends tosses a mishmash of familiar characters and story tropes into a blender to create an entertaining but disjointed reboot that fails to commit to any idea long enough to make an impression.  

About the Film 

The Karate Kid franchise is a posterchild for Hollywood’s penchant for recycled storytelling. The original 1984 film was a smash hit, so it was inevitably followed by several direct sequels, a standalone spin-off (The Next Karate Kid, 1994), and a remake (a 2010 film starring Jackie Chan and Jaden Smith). There has even been a successful streaming series, Cobra Kai (2018-2025), tossed into the mix for good measure. The latest entry in the sprawling franchise is a reboot that attempts to unite the original film with the 2010 remake while capitalizing on the success of the streaming series. Karate Kid: Legends tosses a mishmash of familiar characters and story tropes into a blender to create an entertaining but disjointed reboot that fails to commit to any idea long enough to make an impression.  

If you have watched a Karate Kid movie in any of its incarnations, then—with one exception—you’ll likely be able to anticipate all the punches this film tries to throw. There aren’t many surprises, but the well-trodden narrative path is still fun to traverse. Ben Wang, an actor who first caught my attention as a standout in the Angel Studios film Sight, is well-cast as the new “karate kid.” He has enough charm to carry the film, and he offers something fresh as the first actor of Asian heritage in the role. He is endearing in the dramatic scenes and proves himself capable of handling the action sequences, which are exciting (even if too few and far between).    

The one curveball in the story is that, unlike in prior films, this karate kid is not a novice at martial arts. When the film opens, he is already a skilled kung fu student under the tutelage of Mr. Han (Jackie Chan). During the film’s first-act action scene, he lays the smackdown on a bunch of adult goons.  

The film’s most inspired creative decision is to invert the traditional character roles. During the first half of the film, the karate kid is not the student; he is the sensei. He endeavors to train a down-on-his-luck former boxer (Joshua Jackson) to step back into the ring. The role reversal is unexpected but not unwelcome. Alas, this is Karate Kid and not Boxing Adult. By the midway point, the film reverts to the standard template of “a kid is trained by a quirky sensei to fight a bully who happens to be the ex-boyfriend of the love interest.”   

The biggest issue with Karate Kid: Legends is not that it is bad but that it is multiple decent films crammed into one movie. Various interesting story elements weave in and out of the plot too quickly to find their footing. The intriguing role reversal idea is abandoned without a satisfying conclusion, and the familiar storyline kicks into action too late to build momentum. The dueling storylines compete rather than complement each other, as it is unclear what the karate kid still has to learn. After all, he has already emphatically demonstrated his butt-kicking abilities to audiences.  

Once the film has settled into the second storyline, it brings back original karate kid Ralph Macchio. The dynamic between Macchio and Chan as two instructors teaching different branches of martial arts (kung fu and karate) is a fun idea. But even though Macchio’s return will be nostalgic for fans of the original, his screen time is sparse, and it’s unclear what purpose he truly serves. Ultimately, it is just another seed of an idea that is not given room to grow.  

Overall, Karate Kid: Legends is an entertaining film, even if it never realizes its full potential. Fans of the franchise will appreciate the various callbacks, and audiences looking for a simple Hollywood underdog story may find enough here to scratch that itch. But a lack of commitment to a singular vision prevents the film from fashioning its plethora of ideas into anything more than another average Hollywood retread.  

Perseverance 
 

There is no shortage of motivational teaching and quotes in this film. Half the dialogue seems to be sage nuggets of wisdom (“you practice violence, you get violence,” etc.). The overarching theme is perseverance. It certainly applies to karate. Li Fong (the “karate kid”) is exhorted multiple times that when you get knocked down, you get back up. But the theme has deeper, more personal significance as well.  

Because the karate kid begins the film with martial arts competency rather than spending the runtime developing it, the character arc is shifted in several significant ways. For Fong, the primary lesson is about persevering through emotional challenges, not physical ones. His older brother was murdered, and Fong feels guilty about freezing in the moment rather than saving him. Both he and his mother (Ming-Na Wen) struggle to move on from that life-altering event. In some of the film’s best dialogue, Fong and the former boxer talk about being able to pinpoint the moment their lives changed forever. For the former, it was the birth of his daughter. For the latter, the loss of his brother. One positive and one negative. Yet the film suggests that while the past can’t be undone, it doesn’t have to define us. We can persevere and move into the future.    

The film’s wisdom applies to the process of overcoming grief and loss. But it is also relevant to Christians. The apostle Paul wrote about perseverance in sports as a metaphor for the Christian life (1 Corinthians 9:24-27). In the film, Chan’s character says to Fong, “In life we only have one question. Is it worth fighting for or not?” The gospel is a prize worth fighting for. So when life knocks us down, we get back up.