The Karate Kid films are classics to me, and Cobra Kai is a great follow-up. I found the fourth film from 1994 and the 2010 remake with Jackie Chan entertaining, but not exactly special.
But before the final season of Cobra Kai had even aired, a new film was announced. This time with both Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio.
I was still in the middle of Cobra Kai, and that show already feels like one big fan-service feast, so personally I was not exactly waiting for a new Karate Kid film. Still, I put on Karate Kid: Legends last night…
If you watch the trailer for the sixth Karate Kid film, it looks like the big Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio show. But that is not really the case.
For most of its runtime, Legends is a standalone story with new locations and new characters. And that is when the film is at its strongest. The characters are pretty decent. The bad guy is played by Aramis Knight, and he has one of those faces that instantly makes you dislike him. He does that well.
Of course the “legends” are eventually brought in, but I miss a bit of emotional involvement there. Why are they in this film? What are they doing there?
It is obviously a nod to the original films, and without Ralph Macchio it would not really be a Karate Kid film. But it all feels a little unnecessary. Especially when you see how beautifully and satisfyingly Cobra Kai wraps everything up.
The story is extremely standard. Someone faces setbacks, trains very hard to overcome them and beat the bad guy. Nothing new there, but still entertaining enough for an evening on the couch.
Because let us be honest: films like this are always kind of fun, right?
3 stars.