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A teenage boy Daniel (Ralph Macchio) and his mother move from New Jersey to Southern California for a new start. Upset about having to leave all of his friends he doesn't like it there until he meets a pretty girl named Ali (Elizabeth Shue). The problem is that her ex-boyfriend is one of those little tough-guy, poor little rich kid, karate school bums. He has always had money and did whatever he wanted. He has a group of similar followers who all act the same. Much of this attitude comes from the instructor of their Karate School, who is also one of those cold-blooded ex-Marine Vietnam veteran, "take no prisoners" types. The type of karate he teaches is how to kill and mame, not how to not fight. At the apartment complex where Daniel and his mother live, Daniel meets Mr.Miyagi (Pat Morita). Mr. Miyagi is an old man from Okinowa, and over the next year teaches Daniel life, proper behavior, Karate, and manhood. Daniel had been beat up and tormented by Ali's ex-boyfriend and his group until Mr Miyagi stepped in, and to Daniel's surprise, easily defeated all with his brand of karate. To keep the gang off of Daniel, Mr. Miyagi and Daniel go to the Karate school and ask that the harassement stop, but when that doesn't work, an agreement to leave Daniel alone while he trains for competition is reached. Mr Miyagi teaches Daniel a "smart" type of karate, the kind where technique and quality of skill is more important than quantity. The competition is held and Daniel wins, defeating Ali's Ex-boyfriend in the last match. This was the first installment of the Karate Kid Series.Read full review
Directed by John G. Avildsen Written by Robert Mark Kamen Starring: Ralph Macchio Pat Morita Elisabeth Shue Martin Kove William Zabka Produced by Jerry Weintraub R.J. Louis (executive producer) Bud S. Smith (associate producer) Distributed by Columbia Pictures Release date June 22, 1984 Runtime 126 min. About the Karate Kid - One of the best 80s movies and Sports movies The Karate Kid is about a teenage boy, Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio), who moves with his mother from Newark, New Jersey to Reseda, California, in the San Fernando Valley district of L.A.. The handyman of their apartment building is a kindly and humble Okinawan immigrant named Mr. Kesuke Miyagi (Pat Morita). The last night of summer, Daniel and his new friends, including Ali Mills (Elisabeth Shue), are at the beach, when Ali's ex-boyfriend Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) and his friends, pull up on motorbikes. Johnny and Ali begin arguing, and Ali blasts a radio. Angered, Johnny throws the radio to the ground. Daniel moves to pick it up, and ignores Johnny's warning not to get involved. Soon Daniel and Johnny fight, but Daniel loses. Unwittingly, Daniel has made an enemy of one of Cobra Kai karate dojo's best students. The Cobra Kai dojo is an arguably over-the-top portrayal of a sadistic, macho, and prideful form of martial arts, perhaps a symbolic representation of the "dark side" of martial arts. Johnny and his cronies torment Daniel as much as they can. When Daniel retaliates with a prank at a Halloween dance (where Johnny is seen rolling what appears to be a marijuana cigarette laced with PCP), he is pursued by Johnny and his friends, who proceed to beat him until he can barely stand. Just then, Mr. Miyagi intervenes and rescues Daniel in a surprising display of karate (stunt work by Fumio Demura). Daniel, upon learning this, asks Mr. Miyagi to be his teacher (sensei). With some persuasion, Miyagi agrees to accompany Daniel to confront the sensei of the Cobra Kai dojo and insist that he tell his students to stop their harassment of Daniel. However, the sensei, John Kreese (Martin Kove), is a vicious fighter (later revealed in the sequels as a Vietnam Veteran) who regularly barks out condemnations of mercy or restraint. To settle the matter, Miyagi announces Daniel will enter a Valley-wide tournament where Cobra Kai students can fight Daniel on equal terms. Miyagi also requests that Johnny and his friends stop bullying Daniel in the interim while the boy is trained. Kreese assents and orders his students to leave Daniel alone, but threatens that if Daniel does not appear at the tournament, the harassment will resume and Miyagi himself will be targeted as well. Without spoiling the movie's ending, Mr. Miyagi and Daniel experience conflict as Daniel-son struggles with a male authority figure so intent on teaching focus and patience. But Daniel LaRusso's skill and mental toughness are put on the line in the ending karate tournament where Daniel must face the Cobra Kai clan!Read full review
I bought this so my kids could see what a greasy movie this was..... and because Ralph Macchio is my childhood crush! :) We all enjoyed the movie and the features -- you've got to buy this DVD if you want to see amazing acting!
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
After buying the new version of The Karate Kid I was telling my 11yr old about the original movie. He seemed really interested. I bought it as a gift and he loved it. He watched it two nights in a row, and another night since then. I highly recommend this movie.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New
Of all the Karate Kid movies, the original one with Ralph Macchio is still the best! My 6 year old just started karate lessons, and this movies inspired him to keep at it.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
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