Outside of superhero movies, it’s difficult to think of a franchise that has had more sequels, reboots, and spin-off attempts than the Karate Kid. This latest version attempts to pull an “ Avengers: Endgame” by introducing fan favorite characters from classic and contemporary Karate Kid properties, all in one epic story. Will Karate Kid Legends prove to be just another ‘80s nostalgia bait film, or will this jumble of pop culture icons and fresh faces become truly legendary?

The Plot

All versions of the Karate Kid story begin with the same premise. A teenager moves to a new town, gets bullied, and ultimately finds love and belonging through martial arts.

Karate Kid Legends follows the same formula, with the central angst filled high-schooler, this time named Li Fong (Ben Wang), moves from Beijing to New York City. There, he becomes friends with a charming classmate, Mia (Sadie Stanley) and her father, a former boxer and current pizza slinger, Victor (Joshua Jackson). When a local bully and his loan shark mentor start causing trouble, Li Fong must study under two masters, fight to defend his new friends, confront his past trauma, and find his way back to the sport that he loves.

The Twist

Karate Kid Legends attempts to divert from previous Karate Kid films by turning the “student and master” martial arts trope on its head. The first half of the film is about Li Fong teaching Mia’s dad Victor how to become a better boxer by incorporating Kung Fu techniques. I honestly loved this, and I could have been happy with an entire movie based on this subplot.

The Action

The fights in Karate Kid Legends are a lot of fun. The crew did a solid job of blending different styles of fighting and filmmaking. There are moments that will remind you of 80s karate films, energetic Kung Fu classics, and even some good old American boxing movies. There are even some obviously intentional nods to the training montages in the Rocky franchise.

The Cast

As one would expect of a film attempting to merge multiple movies into one universe, the cast of Karate Kid Legends is full of top-notch talent. Of course, Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio bring their respective talents. Sadie Stanley works well as the object of Li’s affections, Wyatt Olef is a surprising delight as Li’s SAT tutor, and Joshua Jackson is utterly adorable as the washed-up boxer and unconventional father figure.

The real standout, however, is Ben Wang in the lead role. His boyish charms immediately won me over, and his skills as a martial artist are great to watch. I really look forward to what he accomplishes in future films.

The Karate Kid Cinematic Universe

One very ambitious trick that Karate Kid Legends actually pulls off nicely is tying together all the different iterations of Karate Kid into one shared universe. It succeeds at this by using a very light touch, bringing characters and concepts from each piece without a lot of heavy-handed exposition. For example, Mr. Han is introduced as Li Fong’s Chinese Kung Fu teacher, but no mention is made of his former student Dre Parker or the events depicted in The Karate Kid from 2010.

The Problems

The first half of Karate Kid Legends is a perfectly enjoyable teen fish-out-of-water story. The problems begin when their ambition grows to the larger universe. The editing gets choppy, and the lack of character development for the antagonists becomes even more obvious. The chemistry between Danny Laruso (Ralph Macchio) and Mr. Han (Jackie Chan) feels a bit stiff, and how can you have Ming Na Wen in a martial arts movie and not show off her skills?

The real problem, the one that almost broke the movie experience for me, came at the very end. I’ll avoid spoilers, but there is an event during the final fight in the original Karate Kid that was strangely absent here. This event was a major source of tension building up to the climax, and without it, the entire ending fell flat.

Who Should Watch?

Karate Kid Legends may not turn out to be the nostalgia bait hit that the studios were hoping for, but it’s not all bad. As an adult, I’d say I enjoyed about 75% of this film, so if you can forgive 25%, then it might be worth watching. The biggest compliment that I can give this movie, however, is that my son told me he was genuinely nervous about the final fight, and that he hasn’t stopped attempting his own version of the flying dragon kick since we left the theater.