The Karate Kid (1984)

Director:

John G. Avildsen

Writer:

Robert Mark Kamen (written by)

Release Date:

22 June 1984 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Only the 'Old One' could teach him the secrets of the masters.

Plot:

A handyman/martial arts master agrees to teach a bullied boy karate and shows him that there is more to the martial art than fighting.

Plot Keywords:

Karate | Bully | Fight | Apartment | Master

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 2 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Ralph Macchio	...	Daniel Larusso
Pat Morita	...	Mr. Kesuke Miyagi (as Noriyuki 'Pat' Morita)
Elisabeth Shue	...	Ali Mills
Martin Kove	...	John Kreese
Randee Heller	...	Lucille Larusso
William Zabka	...	Johnny Lawrence
Ron Thomas	...	Bobby Brown
Rob Garrison	...	Tommy
Chad McQueen	...	Dutch
Tony O'Dell	...	Jimmy
Israel Juarbe	...	Freddy Fernandez
William Bassett	...	Mr. Mills
Larry B. Scott	...	Jerry
Juli Fields	...	Susan
Dana Andersen	...	Barbara

Also Known As:

Besuto kiddo (Japan) [ja]
Het uur van de waarheid (Netherlands) [nl]
Karaté Kid - Le moment de vérité (Canada: French title) [fr]
Karatê Kid - A Hora da Verdade (Brazil) [pt]
Karate Kid (Finland) [fi]
Karate Kid (Greece) [el]
Karate Kid (Denmark) [da]
Karate Kid (West Germany) [de]
Karate kid - sannhetens øyeblikk (Norway) [no]
Karate kid, el momento de la verdad (Spain) [es]
Karate kid, le moment de vérité (France) (video title) [fr]
Le moment de vérité (France) [fr]
Momento da Verdade (Portugal) [pt]
Per vincere domani (Italy) [it]

Runtime:

126 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Japanese

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | Iceland:L | Portugal:M/12 | South Korea:12 | Argentina:13 | Chile:TE | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Norway:12 | Singapore:PG | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | USA:PG | West Germany:12 | Australia:PG | UK:12 (re-rating) (2005)

Filming Locations:

19223 Saticoy Street, Reseda, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Delphi Films

Trivia:

Mr. Miyagi is named for Chogun Miyagi, who became the forerunner of karate-jutsu in Okinawa, Japan. 'Sensei Miyagi' as he was called, created his own style of karate-jutsu, which he dubbed 'Goju Ryu', which means 'hard and soft style'.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the scene where Daniel catches the fly in the chopsticks, for the first few cuts, the fly is somewhere in the middle of the chopsticks and the chopsticks cross each other past the point where the fly is being held. In a later angle, the fly is held between the very tips of the chopsticks and the sticks do not cross each other over their entire length. He never drops or releases the fly and re-catches or picks it up, so the fly was clearly moved between takes.

Quotes:

Daniel: This school sucks, man. Sucks.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Veronica Mars: Meet John Smith (#1.3)" (2004)

Soundtrack:

CRUEL SUMMER

Best American martial arts movie ever made

This movie will perhaps be remembered as the best martial arts movie ever made. Movies of this genre are usually more concerned with action scenes that the stories tend to be poor and appeal to the audience on a short run. With the exception of Kurosawa's films, the Karate Kid is perhaps one of the best and most popular martial arts movies ever. Ralph Macchio, who is also good in "the Outsiders," does a fine portrayal of the novice, frustrated Daniel Larusso (he was 23 years old when he made this film??). Equally superb is the wise and "cool-as-a-cucumber" Mr. Miyagi, played by Pat Morita. Once again, John G. Avildsen has directed a film that glorifies the fiesty nature of underdogs. This is the "Rocky" movie of the 80's.