By this juncture, The Karate Kid series has become (as many series do) cheese-ball and unintentionally funny. There’s a glimmer of the original film’s greatness but many aspects in Part III are decidedly off, round-kicking it into definite so-bad-its-good territory.
As with the first Karate Kid, my personal biases made revisiting this flick more enjoyable. It’s a feel-good, Rocky type film that mostly lives up to the original. However, cheese and corn is definitely starting to ooze into the series.
You might think I’m a bit odd for giving this one five stars, but I have fond memories this coming-of-age with a mysterious mentor, and there are some personal connections that are completely biased.