Old vs. New- The Original Karate Kid vs. the Remake

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   Stevennix2001posted 13 years ago

   Okay, I'm sure most people have seen both versions, so in your opinions, which is the better film?  The remake of Karate Kid? Or the original?  Here are the criteria for you to judge by:
   
   Better Karate Kid protagonist:  Daniel San vs. Dre Parker- Who is the better protagonist and why?  Which one do you feel more sorry for, and why? Which one did you find yourself rooting for more?
   
   Better Teacher- Mr. Miyagi vs. Mr. Han:  Who makes a better teacher and why?  Which seemed like more of an interesting character to you, and why?
   
   Better villains:  Which movie had the most intimidating villains?  Which had the the most memorable ones in your mind?
   
   Better supporting cast:  Which film had the better supporting cast?
   
   Better overall story and movie:  Which one did you like better and why? 
   
   
   Please for the sake of argument, DO NOT pick both movies for each criteria, as I want you to pick one over the other.  Don't get me wrong, you can pick per say Dre Parker as being the better protagonist, yet pick Mr. Miyagi for the teacher category, for example.  However, please don't say that you'd say both movies are tied, as this is meant to be a debate.

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      manthyposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I like the original in all the catergories above.
      Thanks for the question but it isn't even close in my opinion I hope this helps

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   lindsy lohan222posted 13 years ago

   well my answer is the new one i like it much better and i like dre parker much more than daniel san thats my answer
   
   ~~lindsy lohan

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   lindsy lohan222posted 13 years ago

   oh yeah and i like the new one
   have fun
   
   ~~lindsy lohan

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   Stevennix2001posted 13 years ago

   Well in my mind. Both movies are good in their own ways.  Sure, the remake pretty much follows the exact same story scene by scene, but it does add a bit more authenticity with it's China setting, and it adds clever twists to some of the classic "karate kid" scenes" like "Wax on, Wax off" is replaced with "Jacket on, Jacket off."  Both are clever deceptions for the audience to wonder how these methods would teach each pupil martial arts, yet once the teacher explains it, it becomes uniquely clever in it's own deception. 
   
   However, going by each criteria here.  In terms of main protagonist between Dre and Daniel, I'd have to say that Daniel San is the better one between the two. Don't get me wrong, I liked Dre too, and I did feel lot of empathy for him when he was feeling victimized by those bullies in the film, but I also felt the same amount of sympathy for Daniel as well.  And, although I'll admit it seems that the balance between teacher and student is more consistent in the remake, where both the pupil and teacher learn from each other, I would have to say that Daniel is still better. Mainly because of their ages.  Although it's sad to see Dre get picked on, but he's still just a kid.  You're allowed to still look weak at that age, and he'll automatically be given street cred for being in a fight period.  Nobody will mess with him when he gets older, as most people won't remember who won the fight when he was a kid. 
   
   Plus, an adult can still get involved and it won't look weak to other kids around that age; thus he's allowed to go up to his mom or teacher and say, "(Insert random authority figure here), some kid that knows Kung Fu is picking on me.  I'm scared for my life...HELP!" 
   
   However, Daniel San is a teenager in high school; big difference.  At that age, you have no choice but to fight.  To back down from guys picking on you, or crying to an authority figure, will only make you look weak by that age, as you're at a point in your life where you're learning how to be an adult yourself.  Therefore, you can feel more of an urgency for Daniel to learn how to defend himself vs. Dre, who is still just a kid, so it's okay if an adult gets involved at his point in life.  Of course, I never lived in China, so maybe the culture is vastly different there, but this is just my opinion.  Point goes to the original when it comes to the protagonist.
   
   
   As for the teacher, I would have to go with Mr. Han.  His message of balance is much more clear in the remake, as both the student and master learn from each other; whereas the original it seems like Daniel was the one relying on Mr. Miyagi for guidance predominantly.  Sure, Daniel did become sort of a son to Mr. Miyagi, but it's kind of vague when depicting their relationship.  Plus, Jackie Chan used fire in that movie for pete's sakes.  FIRE!  How cool is that?  Therefore, Mr. Han is clearly the better teacher between the two.
   
   As for villains, it's tough for me to pick to be honest.  If you're going by who's the more memorable villains, then obviously the original wins out easily.  However, some of the over top moments by these same villains kind of take away from their menacing demeanor they establish in other scenes.  However, that's what makes the original villains so memorable.   However, if you're going by which villains seem like a bigger threat, then I'd go with the remake.  Not only do these new villains seem ruthless as hell, but you can almost sense the bully, Cheng, in the remake, would kill Dre if he could legally get away with it; whereas the original you could sense the bullies just wanted to scare and humiliate Daniel, but they never wanted to beat him up to the point where they kill him.  In the remake, I kind of sensed they wanted to kill Dre, which makes the villains in the remake far more scarier.  Therefore, I know I'll get some flak for this, but I'm going with the remake's villains on this one.  Besides, it's lot harder to take a bunch of karate skilled bullies that train in a dojo next to a Wal-Mart more seriously than Kung fu trained students training in an actual Chinese Dojo...IN CHINA!
   
   As for supporting cast, I think the original clearly has the best.  Not only are the supporting characters more fleshed out, but they seem a lot more supportive than the remake's.  Granted, Dre's girlfriend seems supportive, but the mother in the movie doesn't seem to hold a candle to the original mom, who was much more supportive of the main protagonist; thus the point goes to the original.
   
   As for overall better story and better film in general, this is really a tough call for me.  I liked both films just as equally, and i think both offer audiences a great entertaining experience.  Although I think the remake tells a better story overall, as it's more well put together.  Plus, the twists they added to the original scenes while remaining faithful to the original story was rather clever to say the least.  However, in the end, I'd still have to go with the original only slightly.  Sure, the remake is a better told story, but the original has more epic and memorable scenes that still continue to stand the test of time; whereas the remake, since it follows the original almost scene by scene (with a few twists added), it doesn't come off nearly as memorable as the original.  However, I would still recommend both movies though.

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      manthyposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      You make a case that is hard to argue, I think I tend to like the original films when it comes to remakes and maybe I am reminising ;0)

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         Stevennix2001posted 13 years agoin reply to this

         Oh I don't disagree. I think overall, the original "Karate Kid" movie is better, but the remake has it's own merits.  As far as remakes and originals in general, I do agree with you that a lot of times the remakes don't often hold a candle to the original stories, as remakes have the daunting task of basically retelling the same story in a different way, while still standing as it's own creation.  Something that's easier said than done.
         
         If you want, I know one hubber named Cogerson has statistically put together remakes vs. the original films they were based on. It's pretty clever on how he does it, as he factors in box office revenue, critic and audience scores, and oscars won into the equation mathematically.  You should definitely check it out, as it's amazing to see where each one ranks. 
         
         http://cogerson.hubpages.com/hub/Battle … 25-to-2011

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   optimus grimlockposted 13 years ago

   I like machio and smith for debate sake I think Machio wins it by a nose. I the new one had better villians because the original ones were really pubks and the kid in the newer one was to diobolical for his age! Chan vs pat is a tough call i think chan did pat justice because no one else could do that role like chan! Its a close one I think they're even in bein funny, pat was a better teacher but chan was a little more likable. If you argue pat was better I wouldnt be mad because they were both good. I dunno about cast but I'd..... taja p
   Overall its a tie they both have there good point and few bad points it just depends how you look at it. I hope they make a 2 cus smith was really good!

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   lindsy lohan222posted 13 years ago

   what omg machio wait where are you from...... that sounds like some cool names there lol
   
   
   ~~ lindsy lohan

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   Johnjfernandoposted 13 years ago

   I like the new one as much as the old not just because it has Jackie Chan in it, but it has a dynamic plot to go with it and shows character development as well towards the final bout. It also shows that Jayden Smith isn't someone who gets in through a famous father because he really had to work hard to make some of those moves happen.

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   marek504posted 13 years ago

   I was pleasantly surprised with the remake.  It was cleverly done and definitely had elements of the original.  But when it comes down to it, the original is the one I like most just because it was the original come back kid flick.

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      Johnjfernandoposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      ya i know what you mean. Miss the good old days of making great films. They normally say evolution is a big deal as the year progresses but I think sometimes we tend go backwards and flip-flop with movies that could have done a lot better.

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   ediggityposted 13 years ago

   First , thank you for starting this thread.  Second, I can't believe there is even confusion about which movie was better. After the opening scene of the new KK I knew it was going to suck, and it did.  The acting was beyond horrible and unbelievable.  Like in the sense that I was unable to believe Bow Wow could become the Karate Kid.  I'm thinking to myself really?  Bow Wow, really?  What a travesty.  I will never get that 1.5 hrs of my life back. The true  Mr.  Miagi would be very disappointed.

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    optimus grimlockposted 13 years ago

    it was jaden smith and the movie was way over a 90 minutes

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    Stevennix2001posted 13 years ago

    Yeah, Grimlock is right.  It was Jaden Smith that starred in the remake and NOT Little Bow Wow.  Hell, I don't even think that kid is popular anymore.  As for the length of the film, I think it's about two and a half hours long, so I think your thinking of another film, Ediggity.

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    ediggityposted 13 years ago

    Lol, the kid looked like Bow Wow, that's why I couldn't believe it, and I only watched 1.5 hrs of it.  That was enough for me. 

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    Rohittranscendsposted 11 years ago

    What i believe friends is that the original movie was much better. There was a music in the film. By music I don't mean the background music. I mean there was a beautiful rythm in the movie. The eastern philosophy has been very beautifully depicted in there. Being an Indian myself, I really was impressed. I got to learn so much from that movie. The acting also was very beautiful. There is a serenity in the movie. Whenever I watch I come out to be a wiser person.
    The second movie was good but the focus on martial arts is to much. There is no philosophy thing.
    And the main drawback is that it is named Karate Kid but its all about Kung fu. Strange. It would have been better if the producer had chosen Ookinawa or mainland Japan as a location as China and Japan are totally different in culture.
    I wanted to write much more but iI don't want to bore you friends.
    So if you are reading this post then please do me a favour. Please try to watch the original movie and its sequels  again with an open mind, trying to concentrate on the points I said. Maybe you also will emerge a wiser happier person with more inner peace.

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