Inclubabu Plot so thin, it es unnoticed.
Ensofter Overrated and overhyped
Micah Lloyd Excellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.
Phillipa Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.
zkonedog When analyzing this fourth film of the Karate Kid series (although I would consider it more of a "distant cousin" to the original trilogy), the first phrase that comes to mind is "you can only go to the well so many times". With "The Next Karate Kid", the well ran dry.For a basic plot summary, the film sees Mr. Miyagi (Pat Morita) mentoring a troubled teen (Hilary Swank) who's parents have ed away. A mash-up of Karate Kid I, II, and III then occurs, with themes from each film present but briefly touched upon.Though I could go on and on about why this film is poor, here is the primary reason: the high expectations. The original "Karate" trilogy is so incredible, that anything less from the established characters is going to be a letdown. Thus, the whole movie I kept waiting for great things to happen, but they never did. I can't think of one single scene from this film that tops any scene from the first three.The only thing that elevates "Next" above a one star is the performance by Morita as Miyagi. As in KK III, he steals the show with his comedy and words of wisdom.I think that the fourth Karate Kid film can be summed up thusly: Had the original trilogy never been made, this film may be looked at as decent. However, when comparing it to the gold standard of that trilogy, it is hugely disappointing.
Hitchcoc If this was my only encounter with Hillary Swank, I would have thought that they picked some young actress to fill this role. I didn't realize she would develop into one of our best actresses. I won't go into detail. It's another rehash of the training that a martial arts person needs to face. This young woman is a bit of a challenge to Pat Morita (what else is new). There are some new rules for her to become what she needs to become and that is the gist of this. The story is quite predictable, although the setting is interesting. If this film had not been made for more than a paycheck it would have been fine. It would be fun for a young woman, I guess.
AaronCapenBanner Strange, utterly needless sequel has Pat Morita returning one last time as Mr. Miyagi. Set several years after Part III, Daniel is off on his own, leaving Miyagi free to instruct another troubled teenager, this time a woman, played by Hillary Swank, who is the granddaughter of his old commanding officer, who is being terrorized in her school by(you guessed it!) bullying martial arts/military cadet students(led by the dependable Michael Ironside) Plot is utterly predictable and uninspired; Miyagi's story was tied to Daniel's so having him instruct this girl is incongruous; it just didn't involve the viewer. Though not as silly as Part III, this is still not credible either, and marks an unfitting end to a story best left alone.
gwnightscream Pat Morita, Hilary Swank, Chris Conrad, Constance Towers, and Michael Ironside star in this 1994 drama sequel. In this chapter, Mr. Miyagi (Morita) attends a WWII ceremony in Boston, MA honoring him and his late friend. He visits his friend's widow, Louisa (Towers) and meets her granddaughter, Julie (Swank). He notices that Julie is angry because her parents are dead and takes her anger out on Louisa. He asks Louisa to spend time in his house in California while he helps Julie. He takes Julie under his wing teaching her karate to defend herself against bullies in school and regain her self-confidence. Julie also meets Eric (Conrad), a boy in school who's a cadet for the air force and they fall for each other. Eric and Julie face the same bullies in league with Col. Dugan (Ironside) who's a war nut. This is a pretty good sequel, Morita and Swank are great together and Bill Conti's score is excellent as usual. I recommend this.
