The Karate Kid... Review

Ahhhh, the remake... You gotta love it. It's a simple formula: one movie with a cult following, plus one star who is currently hot, add an enormous budget and VOILA! A box office smash! No extra writing or creativity needed.
With my knowledge of this formula, comes an automatic skepticism when Hollywood inevitably adheres to it...
'Friday the 13th'.. Original- Great. Remake-Shitty.
'Nightmare on Elm Street'.. Original- Classic. Remake- Wack as hell.
The same applies to 'Psycho', 'Blues Brothers', 'Amityville Horror', and the animated icon- turned big budget disaster we call 'G.I. Joe'.
So when I saw that they were remaking Karate Kid, I said "Oh Hell Naw". Then when I saw that Jackie Chan was gonna be the Mr. Miyagi character, I said "Are You Kidding Me?" THEN when I saw that Will Smith's son was going to play the actual kid who learns karate, I damn near threw a shoe at my television. "This is going to be horrible!", my inner hater yelled.
People, I was wrong. You rarely hear me say this, but THIS MOVIE WAS FRICKIN AWESOME. (yes, I said 'frickin awesome'... I realize rappers don't talk like this, but give me a damn break). It had its slow parts and implausible sequences, but Jaden Smith made every second he was on screen thoroughly enjoyable. There were times when I forgot he was 11 years old, as he brought life to the script in a way only a seasoned thespian can.
We all know the plot... wimpy kid, bullies, big tournament, old dude teaching in unorthodox ways, dramatic ending in tournament... yada yada. We've seen this plot play out with karate, spelling bees, football, soccer, debate, even chess- but this time something seemed different. To start, the fact that the movie took place in China added a dynamic to the story that opened alot of doors for the writing. Chinese bullies? I'm intrigued. Jaden Smith pop-locking for a violin wielding Asian girl? Quite interesting. With all of the cultural differences that could've been explored, the most intelligent choice that the writers made was to NOT explore the "black kid in China" angle. As a viewer, I was thinking "any Black kid I know would've slapped the shit out of these Chinese kids"- but the fact that Dre (Smith's character) didn't- added a level of emotion. It was almost as if I remembered what it was like to be bullied by kids who had no business bullying anybody.
The fight sequences were equally captivating. I don't know if it was the sound editing, or superb combat choreography, but it seemed like every time Dre hit the ground- I felt it. (people in the theater were groaning and saying "Owwww" in unison- so it wasn't just me). There is a scene with Jackie Chan "fighting" the bullies that is probably in my top five fight scenes of the last five years.
My only criticism of the movie is .... brace yourselves... Taraji Henson. (anybody who knows me, knows that I love me some Taraji Henson).. Is she ever gonna play a role where she is not the distraught, struggling woman on the brink of tears? Jeez!! I would just like to see her show a bit more range. (and maybe some skin)... JOKING..(but not really joking)...

Verdict: A great movie going experience. Don't be surprised if you get choked up at the end. Jaden Smith is a beast. The only thing missing from the movie was somebody yelling "Put him in a body bag, Johnny" in Chinese.
4 1/2 out of 5 stars.