Disclaimer: Contains spoilers!
Plot Summary: Daniel and Miyagi travel to Okinawa, Japan to see Miyagi's dying father and to settle an old vendetta.
Review: You'd think with a movie like "The Karate Kid" there wouldn't be much of a story to continue on. I mean, let's face it, the first one was just about a kid learning to stand up for himself, an unlikely friendship, and getting the girl in the process. But, surprisingly, they played it smart and switched focus; instead of Daniel having trouble, we explore more of Miyagi's life. The result is that part two is well done, surpassing the original in a few aspects, but lacking that same level of charm that makes the original iconic. Honestly, the original and this one are the only two I like...three and four are terrible, and the remake is meh.
As amusing as it is to see Danny-boy getting his ass kicked every 10 minutes in part one, I preferred the change of pace to deal with Miyagi. We didn't know enough about Miyagi in part one and this allows for a major expansion of his character. The story feels deeper somehow as Miyagi has lived a life trying to be honorable and sacrificed his happiness to maintain this honor. Things can come off a bit corny as we learn Miyagi's past and how he came to leave Japan. Apparently Miyagi loved some chick, named Yukie, who was arranged to be married to Miyagi's best friend, Sato. Miyagi made, what would appear to be, a declaration of love for Yukie in front of his village. Feeling dishonored by this action, Sato challenged Miyagi to a fight to the death, but, not wanting to fight his best friend, Miyagi sailed off to the USA. Umm, a bit dramatic don't you think, Miyagi? Obviously Miyagi later reconnects with Yukie as she is a bit on the gilf side (never thought I'd write that) after Miyagi and Daniel return to Japan to see the dying father that Yukie's been taking care of. I also think it goes without saying Sato still holds a grudge and wants to fight Miyagi even though this is the battle of grandpas. To give Miyagi a proper love interest, they explain that Yukie never did marry Sato and has been seemingly waiting for him. On a side note, shouldn't they have worked in the fact that Miyagi had been married and his wife and kid were dead? Maybe it's me, but this whole "I've always loved you" implication feels flimsy knowing Miyagi did technically move on.
In essence, this is Miyagi's adventure and Danny-boy is along for the ride, but the two still manage to bond all the more. It was cool seeing their friendship grow stronger as Daniel was willing to go to Japan to be there with Miyagi in his time of need. A moment that subtly emphasizes their friendship is when Miyagi thinks Daniel isn't coming and he looks so disappointed, but then he's trying so hard to hide his happiness when Danny-boy shows up. How cute. Unfortunately, Danny-boy still manages to find ways of getting his ass kicked by local thugs working with Sato's punk ass nephew. Ugh. Have you learned nothing, son? However, we do get resolution with the Cobra Kai situation after their instructor goes apeshit and Miyagi has to put him down, but they write Ali out of the story in the most lame way. Come on, she was such a nice girl...how are you going to say she dumped Daniel over such stupid reasons and decided to date another guy?! This plot line has always bothered me, but the new love interest for Danny-boy is, in fact, the better girl in my opinion: Yukie's niece, Kumiko, played by Tamlyn Tomita. Ms. Tomita has this very traditional look to her, and her character has this girl next door vibe that fits Daniel's personality better than Ali. Also, there was a distinct attempt to make Kumiko a tad tougher than Ali as she tries to help Danny-boy when he gets his ass kicked.
Eventually Sato, who owns the town, says he will destroy everything if Miyagi doesn't finally fight him. Miyagi reluctantly agrees just as some random typhoon or something comes through. Sato conveniently almost dies but is rescued by Miyagi and Daniel, thus, ending the feud. Well that was fucking easy. Of note is Danny saving some little girl during this same storm who tries to choke-hold Daniel for his trouble (was this shit intentional?). Anyway, Sato's nephew acts like a bitch and later challenges Daniel to a fight to the death, because he saved that little girl and the nephew wouldn't help. To kick things off, the nephew just lays Kumiko out in one punch. DAMN. Then Danny-boy starts to hear the movie's theme song, "Glory of Love," playing in his head and beats the shit out of the nephew. Well, it's about time. The movie ends with Miyagi looking on all proud and secretly says in his head, using the emperor's voice, "Gooooood Danny-boy...your training is complete." The ending does feel similar to the original's, but they play it off differently enough and the stakes were higher with Danny's life hanging in the balance.
Overall, the story is actually better this time around. Yes, it can be as cheesy as the first movie, but Miyagi is more interesting than Daniel and switching the setting to Japan opened up a lot of possibilities. At the same time, the characters grow and we got to know them in a different way and watch their friendship strengthen. They also successfully capture the same '80s magic while increasing the scale and scope of the story. The music is good, the scenery looks beautiful (even though it wasn't really filmed in Japan), there were plenty of cool moments for Daniel and Miyagi to shine, and they maintain that fun, crowd-pleaser tone. With that said, there are flaws like Danny-boy looking amateurish, a few cheap effects, corny and unrealistic romance elements, writing characters out, and a decline in the charm. None of this is a serious detriment, but it should be clear that part one is still the superior film in most regards. Nevertheless, this is a worthy sequel and definitely a great film in its own right.
Notable Moment: When Miyagi beats Kreese, the Cobra Kai's teacher. Oh man, that was way overdue.
Final Rating: 7/10
The lovely Ms. Tomita. Although, I wish she would keep her hair out of her face if even for one scene!
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