The Karate Kid Collection 4K UHD Review
You can’t go wrong with The Karate Kid Collection.
While we all wait for the release of “Cobra Kai” season 4 on New Year’s Eve, why not revisit the first 3 Karate Kid films? And yes, I do think it is a bit odd “The Next Karate Kid” isn’t included here, but what can you do?
“The Karate Kid” is not only an 80’s classic but it’s also a martial arts classic. The story revolves around a teen (Daniel) who moves with his mom from New Jersey to California. After being bullied by members of the Karate outfit Cobra Kai, a maintenance man (Miyagi) offers to teach him karate (and defense). Along the way, Daniel learns more than just karate as Miyagi becomes a sort of spiritual father figure.
“The Karate Kid” is the type of film that has everything. It’s a coming of-age movie, it’s a student-teacher story (with excellent performances by Pat Morita and Ralph Macchio), it’s a romance tale, it’s a story about class, and it’s a movie that provides life lessons. It’s a perfect movie for all ages because there’s something for everyone to enjoy here. After “Cobra Kai,” the movie has only become even more engaging as the series makes you rethink the original movie and especially the character of Johnny Lawrence.
“The Karate Kid Part 2” may not be on par with the first installment, but it is a worthy sequel nonetheless. The plot finds Miyagi and Daniel venturing to Okinawa where Miyagi plans to meet with his dying father. Moreover, Miyagi must also confront his past in the form of his former love Yuki and a bitter man (Sato) who wanted to marry Yuki. Daniel (who recently split with Ali) falls in love with Kumiko and develops a new foe in Chozen.
The change of scenery to Okinawa and the sequel’s exploration of Miyagi’s past greatly benefits this second entry despite the fact that the movie does ultimately stick to familiar tropes of the first film with Daniel finding love and having a new foe.
There’s no doubt that “The Karate Kid Part 3” is the weakest of the trilogy, but there’s renewed interest in this one thanks to the forthcoming season of “Cobra Kai.” This is a darker sequel with Kreese teaming up with a war vet (Terry Silver) to seek revenge against Miyagi and Daniel. Meanwhile, Daniel and Miyagi open a bonsai tree business which doesn’t exactly go smoothly.
Thomas Ian Griffith is completely over-the-top as Terry Silver and yet I still enjoy this sequel. It has a different tone, style and story which I appreciated and the concept of Daniel being corrupted by Silver and turning against Miyagi’s teachings makes for some engrossing drama.
Video/Audio:
Presentation: 1.85:1 2160p. How do they look? The first 2 films look deeply impressive here. Not only are the prints cleaned up, but the colors are incredibly crisp. 3 looks a little fuzzy for my taste but it’s still a quality print.
Audio Track: Dolby Atmos and Dolby TrueHd 7.1. How does it sound? Both tracks are lively with the Atmos track providing a deeper audio experience.
The Karate Kid Extras:
* Digital copy
* Theatrical trailer and Sony trailers
* 4 deleted scenes
* The retrospective “Remembering The Karate Kid” featurette
* Blu-Pop- Pop-up trivia track with interviews and other bonuses
* Commentary by John G. Avildsen, Robert Mark Kamen, Ralph Macchio and Pat Morita
* “The Way Of The Karate Kid”- A 2 part 45 minute documentary with interviews, discussions about casting, production, key scenes, the film’s legacy and more.
* “Beyond The Form”- A featurette on training and karate.
* “East Meets West: A Composer’s Notebook” is all about Bill Conti’s score
* “Life Of Bonsai”- Ben Oki discusses Bonsai trees.
The Karate Kid Part 2 Extras:
* Digital copy
* Theatrical trailer and Sony trailers
* Deleted scene
* Commentary by Ralph Macchio and Tamlyn Tomita
* Blu-pop trivia track
* “The Sequel” featurette
The Karate Kid Part 3 Extras:
* Digital copy
* Theatrical trailer
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