Incredible.
Now that he?s 44, he probably still only looks like he?s 27. Somebody check out this guy?s digs; he?s got that Dorian Gray thing going and I want the painting for myself.
But I digress... we?re here to review The Karate Kid Collection.
The plot of the original Karate Kid movie was pretty darn good. Here?s a plot snapshot: Kid moves into new neighborhood, falls for cute girl, runs afoul of karate wielding thugs, meets a cool old guy who shows him a lot more than just karate, but in the end he wins out over the thugs and gets the girl.
Not bad: 43 words without edits.
The Karate Kid II was somewhat derivative, but still okay. Kid goes with cool old guy to Okinawa and helps restore his good name by fighting with honor.
This is a snap: 18 words.
At this rate, I?ll describe the fourth Karate Kid film with just three words... watch.
The third installment, Karate Kid III, begins to bog down: Kid fights with no honor, recovers, salvages respect.
Eight words.
Now for the piece de resistance: The Next Karate Kid in three words or less: Hilary Swank, grrrrrrrowl...
Nice, if you understand that the grrrrrrrowl refers to the Hilary Swank of today, which I do.
This is a good box set if you somehow get over various people?s feelings about the relative worth of all four parts in the series. It?s pretty much impossible to stretch out any material across four films (ask Peter Jackson what he would have done if asked to direct The Next Lord of the Rings, and he?d tell you he prayed they wouldn?t want to throw in the Silmarillion).
Anyway, the worth of any DVD offering, and especially a box set of four films, rests squarely on the extras, so here?s what you get:
The Karate Kid DVD contains full length commentary with director John G. Avildsen, writer Robert Kamen, and actors Pat Morita and Ralph Macchio. This is actually the high point, simply because the principals involved really make this audio track worth the listen. It?s filled with priceless anecdotes and behind-the-scenes information that you won?t find anywhere else. It?s pure gold.
There are also numerous featurettes. ?The Way of the Karate Kid,? ?Beyond the Form,? and ?Life of Bonsai? are all loaded with content and would look good being broadcast on (nearly) any cable station. During interviews, the main actors manage to convey with great feeling what it meant to them to be in this extremely successful series of films.
?East Meets West: A Composers Notebook? takes you into the creation of Bill Conti?s score. Anyone who thinks it was easy to mix contemporary 80?s music tracks with the various character themes should think again. Watch the film again. The music is just as important to the success of this film as most other aspects of directing or producing.
The set contains other theatrical trailers, a photo archive, and a DVD-ROM game (PC only, you Mac heads).
Clearly there is enough rockin? content within The Karate Kid Collection to justify the price. It?s up to you to ask your inner self whether you want to shell out the presidents for it or wait for the box set of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle films that?s bound to be just around the corner...
Ah, from the sublime to the ridiculous.
