The Karate Kid

This remake of the 1984 Ralph Macchio-Pat Morita kitsch classic (itself a Rocky rip-off) rethinks the clichés and bundles a spectacular Far East travelogue on the side. New Karate Kid on the block Dre Parker (Jaden Smith) arrives in Beijing with his single mom (Taraji P. Henson), who's relocated for business reasons from Detroit. Outgoing Dre runs afoul of Chinese boys from a mean-spirited kung-fu school, adding serial bullying to his culture shock. To Dre's rescue comes Mr. Han (a subdued Jackie Chan), the Parkers' taciturn handyman and a secret source of ancient kung-fu knowledge and philosophy. To end the bullying, Han mentors Dre for a tournament showdown against the bullies. The movie delivers on the master-disciple interplay and the dawning respect across races and generations that were always the strength of the series.