# Karate Kid Remake will now be called Kung Fu Kid



## Bill Mattocks (Mar 26, 2009)

http://www.3news.co.nz/News/Enterta...tabid/418/articleID/97204/cat/56/Default.aspx



> Jackie Chan has confirmed he will star in the upcoming remake of 80s martial arts classic _The Karate Kid_.
> 
> Speaking to 3 News reporter Kate Rodger in Hong Kong, Chan also said the film's name will be changed.
> "They don't want to call it _Karate Kid_ any more," says Chan. "They want to call it _The Kung Fu Kid_."


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## stone_dragone (Mar 26, 2009)

Don't screw with my classics...

:angry:


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## zDom (Mar 26, 2009)

Bill Mattocks said:


> http://www.3news.co.nz/News/Enterta...tabid/418/articleID/97204/cat/56/Default.aspx



This is EXACTLY what I've been saying they should do.

It makes perfect sense. I feel a LOT better about this project now.

Er .. except WHY keep the name Mr. Miyagi?


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## Steve (Mar 26, 2009)

Karate Kid and Karate Kid 2 actually hold up pretty well.  I watched them both with my 13 year old son and he loved them.  

I don't think movies need to be remade unless they need to be updated to remain relevant... but they don't ask me!


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## exile (Mar 26, 2009)

stevebjj said:


> Karate Kid and Karate Kid 2 actually hold up pretty well.  I watched them both with my 13 year old son and he loved them.
> 
> I don't think movies need to be remade unless they need to be updated to remain relevant... but they don't ask me!



Apparently, those who decide such things figure that karate is now _ir_relevant, as vs. Kung Fu...

... of course, to be _really_ state-of-the-art relevant, they'd have to call it _The Brazilian Ju-Jitsu Kid_.... doesn't quite have the same ring to it, though!


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## bluekey88 (Mar 26, 2009)

exile said:


> Apparently, those who decide such things figure that karate is now _ir_relevant, as vs. Kung Fu...
> 
> ... of course, to be _really_ state-of-the-art relevant, they'd have to call it _The Brazilian Ju-Jitsu Kid_.... doesn't quite have the same ring to it, though!


 
...not to mention the issues with having an old asian dude rolling around with a twelve year old boy...


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## Steve (Mar 26, 2009)

exile said:


> Apparently, those who decide such things figure that karate is now _ir_relevant, as vs. Kung Fu...
> 
> ... of course, to be _really_ state-of-the-art relevant, they'd have to call it _The Brazilian Ju-Jitsu Kid_.... doesn't quite have the same ring to it, though!


LOL... they already made that one.  It's called Never Back Down... and it was really bad!


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## exile (Mar 26, 2009)

stevebjj said:


> LOL... they already made that one.  It's called Never Back Down... and it was really bad!



Hmmmm.... why am I not surprised? Something with a title like that... it's a giveaway! :uhohh:



bluekey88 said:


> ...not to mention the issues with having an old asian dude rolling around with a twelve year old boy...



Yuck! 

Clearly, a bad idea all around....


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## Andy Moynihan (Mar 26, 2009)

It;s a Cruel( It's a Cruel) Cruel Sum-mer......


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## Steve (Mar 26, 2009)

bluekey88 said:
			
		

> ...not to mention the issues with having an old asian dude rolling around with a twelve year old boy...





exile said:


> Yuck!
> 
> Clearly, a bad idea all around....


I know this is said in jest, but I find jokes like this are in poor taste.   

Maybe I'm overly sensitive to this, but these kind of remarks are right up there with lude jokes about women who train in a grappling art.  I roll with the kids and females at class all the time.   As with all arts, any adult who takes advantage of a kid should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.  A grappling art like BJJ doesn't change the situation at all.


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## bluekey88 (Mar 26, 2009)

stevebjj said:


> I know this is said in jest, but I find jokes like this are in poor taste.
> 
> Maybe I'm overly sensitive to this, but these kind of remarks are right up there with lude jokes about women who train in a grappling art. I roll with the kids and females at class all the time. As with all arts, any adult who takes advantage of a kid should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. A grappling art like BJJ doesn't change the situation at all.


 

I certainly didn't mean to offend.  I kid 'cause I love.  BJJ is a great art.  

However, in all seriousness, I think the general public would have an issue...given the general lack of undersatnding of BJJ (or any MA for that matter) .

Peace,
Erik


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## BrandonLucas (Mar 26, 2009)

Kung Fu Kid I have no problem with.  Keeping the same story line and characters, I do have a problem with.

I just want some clarification as to exactly why Karate Kid needs to be remade...wasn't Never Back Down bad enough?  And it clearly rips the plot off.

I don't see anyone doing a remake of the original Star Wars trilogy...(I better not *ever* see that)...and it could be argued that the new trilogy was intended to do that, but it was made to show the back story for the first trilogy...a prequel.

Now, if someone wanted to cast Jackie Chan as a slightly younger Mr. Miyagi, I could see that happening.  But the movie's a classic.  It doesn't need to be retold.  The original did a fine enough job with that one.


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## CoryKS (Mar 26, 2009)

BrandonLucas said:


> Kung Fu Kid I have no problem with. Keeping the same story line and characters, I do have a problem with.
> 
> I just want some clarification as to exactly why Karate Kid needs to be remade...wasn't Never Back Down bad enough? And it clearly rips the plot off.
> 
> ...


 
They're remaking it _because_ it is a classic story.  People respond to it.  I like the name change because it separates it somewhat from the original.  There's room for multiple variations on a theme.  Hell, the blues music genre is filled with umpty billion takes on the same three-chord progression.


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## arnisador (Mar 26, 2009)

I'm glad for the name change! If only Steve Martin had made "The Mauve Mountain Lion 1 & 2" instead of...


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## Steve (Mar 26, 2009)

bluekey88 said:


> I certainly didn't mean to offend. I kid 'cause I love. BJJ is a great art.
> 
> However, in all seriousness, I think the general public would have an issue...given the general lack of undersatnding of BJJ (or any MA for that matter) .
> 
> ...


I know, dude.  It's all good.  It was just one of those things where I wanted to get that on the record.  

For what it's worth, there have been several wrestling movies as well as one BJJ oriented movie (redbelt) and that kind of thing is never even an issue.  I just watched Visionquest again a few weeks back, as a matter of fact.


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## AoCAdam (Mar 26, 2009)

stevebjj said:


> LOL... they already made that one.  It's called Never Back Down... and it was really bad!


Ugh that was a horrible movie. I went to a friends house and she put it on and I couldn't sit through the entire thing.


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## Gordon Nore (Mar 26, 2009)

I have a better title:

The Next Karate Kid... II


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## Telfer (Dec 29, 2009)

Strangely enough, its NOT going to be called The Kung Fu Kid.

They must have caved into the focus group experts...who didnt believe in the film enough to let it stand on its own name.

Here's the trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvHEm4-QB2o&NR=1


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## celtic_crippler (Dec 29, 2009)

Looks like a good movie...







FOR ME TO POOP ON!


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## SensibleManiac (Dec 29, 2009)

There are tons of things that bother me about that trailer, ...however I'll probably end up seeing the movie.:idunno:


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## Cryozombie (Dec 29, 2009)

To be honest, this could have been a good movie in its own rights, if they didnt try and make it "The Karate Kid".   They could have used a similar story and premise, (its been done dozens of times) and made it a good film, without using the name and it could have flown on its own as an action drama.  

I'm not thrilled about the remake, but I'll probably watch it... and be glad I wont have to give my money to them to do so.  Ahh, the joys of free theater access.


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## Tensei85 (Dec 29, 2009)

Without the name, the movie actually looks decent maybe not the best quality but watchable...


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## Telfer (Dec 29, 2009)

Cryozombie said:


> To be honest, this could have been a good movie in its own rights, if they didnt try and make it "The Karate Kid".   They could have used a similar story and premise and made it a good film, without using the name and it could have flown on its own as an action drama.


Yup, setting it in China gave the writers a great opportunity to re-invent the story...and Chan is actually a better choice to play the mentor. 

Not that Morita didnt give a good performance, but he's not a martial artist.

But...they gave in and made a copycat movie instead.


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## Gordon Nore (Dec 29, 2009)

I'll give it a go when it comes out. I'm not completely against a remake or reboot of the franchise. Karate Kid I and II were terrific films, I think. Karate Kid III jumped the shark entirely with a story that made absolutely no sense. The Next Karate Kid completely missed the point of the original films.

Karate Kid is really about an isolated fatherless boy trying to make his way through adolescence. He is befriended by an isolated childless widower. Despite a lack of martial skills, Morita and Macchio created the chemistry that drove story dramatically. Macchio's gangly uncoordinated demeanor made for the perfect karate student. Lesson: Anyone with the desire can learn.

Morita's non-menacing presence worked well in his favour. Lesson: The karateka is formed with training. Together, they became two haves of a coin. For me, the definitive KK scene was in the second film when Macchio's character comforts Miyagi following the death of his father, recalling his own loss as a young boy: Student becomes master.

Looking forward to the remake, will Chan and Smith provide the same chemistry? Smith is a cute kid, and I don't know if he can transmit the same vulnerability that Macchio did. Conversely, Chan is obviously accomplished at performing martial arts; so much so, that a normal performance of his would overwhelm the story. This movie will require more of his dramatic abilities to sell the story.

It will end up being different from the original. The question is whether they can live up to that spirit.


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## Steve (Dec 29, 2009)

Saw the trailer today at Sherlock Holmes (which was good but not great) and it looks okay.  Definitely not high drama or anything, but it could be fun.


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## Gordon Nore (Jan 5, 2010)

I think this is how they're justifying the title, Karate Kid, for a film in which Kung Fu is practised...



> Dre immediately falls for his classmate Mei Ying -- and the feeling is mutual -- but cultural differences make such a friendship impossible. Even worse, Dre's feelings make an enemy of the class bully, Cheng. In the land of kung fu, Dre knows only a little karate, and Cheng puts "the karate kid" on the floor with ease. With no friends in a strange land, Dre has nowhere to turn but maintenance man Mr. Han (Chan), who is secretly a master of kung fu.
> 
> IMDb


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## Bill Mattocks (Jan 8, 2010)

http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2010/01/0...eveals-fate-of-wax-on-wax-off-the-crane-kick/




> *Jackie Chan Unsure of 'Karate Kid' Remake Title, Reveals Fate Of 'Wax On, Wax Off,' The Crane Kick *
> 
> Posted 22 hrs ago by Larry Carroll in News
> 
> ...


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