Occasionally waxed about the beloved coming-of-age film – GoldDerby

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Coming-of-age films have been around for decades, but really seemed to take off in the 1980s. Films focusing on first love, outsiders and bullying have become increasingly popular over the past decade, with one of the most beloved films turning 40 this summer. “The Karate Kid” opened on June 22, 1984 and unleashed a new idol that teens love, cemented the popularity of martial arts in the US and expertly delivered the lesson that inner strength is just as powerful (even more so) as outer strength . Let’s take a look back at a classic that proved that a movie doesn’t have to have big stars to be a blockbuster. Read on to learn more about the 40th anniversary of “The Karate Kid.”

Screenwriter Robert Mark Kamen had been beaten up by a gang of bullies as a teenager and had turned to martial arts to learn to defend himself. Years later, he was made aware of a story about the young boy of a single mother who had earned a black belt for defending himself against neighborhood bullies. Kamen combined that story with his own to create “The Karate Kid.”

Some of the most prominent emerging actors of the decade were considered for the title role, including Robert Downey Jr., Charlie Sheen, Emilio Estevez, Nicolas Cage, Tom Cruise And Sean Penn. But it was Ralph Macchio who won the role of Daniel LaRusso, an Italian-American teenager from New Jersey who moves to Reseda, California with his single mother and stirs up the hostility of the school bully. Macchio’s resume up to that point was quite short, but he had made his mark as one of the breakout stars in ‘The Outsiders,’ and ‘The Karate Kid’ made him an international star and teen idol.

William Zabka got his first acting role in ‘The Karate Kid’, playing Daniel’s nemesis Johnny Lawrence, an angry teenager who starts a rivalry with Danny over Ali Mills (played by Elizabeth Shue, also in her first major film role), Johnny’s ex-girlfriend who becomes interested in Johnny. Johnny and his friends are members of the Cobra Kai dojo, where they learned aggressive martial arts and Johnny has a black belt. The gang harasses Daniel continuously until the situation escalates and they beat him. These were all hallmarks of a typical teen drama/comedy – a sensitive outsider, a gang of bullies, a love triangle – but Daniel’s defender is anything but typical, and that’s what sets this film apart from other teen films – and sports films.

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The eccentric Okinawan handyman from Daniel’s apartment complex witnesses Johnny’s gang attacking Daniel, and quickly intervenes, effectively ending the attack with disciplined martial arts, leading to Daniel’s desire to learn karate. It would take a very special actor to portray Mr. Miyagi well, with the ability to deliver wise and sometimes humorous bits of wisdom without turning him into a caricature. Japanese actor Toshiro Mifunea favorite of the famous director Akira Kurosawa, was the initial choice; however, he did not speak English. Pat Morita auditioned but was rejected due to his association with comedy, especially his role of Arnold in “Happy Days.” Morita eventually grew a beard and cultivated an accent based on his uncle. When he was finally cast, he was asked to use his first name, Noriyuki Morita, to give the role more authenticity.

Morita’s portrayal of Mr. Miyagi, and the portrayal of the friendship between him and Daniel, is what sets this film apart. After Miyagi makes a deal with Johnny’s cruel sensei John Kreese (Martin Kove) pitting the two boys against each other, he teaches Daniel more than the physical art of karate. From a series of chores to a fun karate chop trick to the true heart of the discipline, Miyagi teaches Daniel the importance of balance (emotional and physical) and the heart over the power of a kick.

“The Karate Kid” became the biggest sleeper hit of 1984, ranking as the fifth highest-grossing film behind “Ghostbusters,” “Beverly Hills Cop,” “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom” and “Gremlins.” It would be the career-defining film for Macchio and Zabka and earn Morita Best Supporting Actor nominations at the Academy Awards and the Golden Globes. Five more films followed over the past four decades, as well as the critically acclaimed series “Cobra Kai” (2018), for which Macchio and Zabka are co-producers and co-stars.

“The Karate Kid” also boosted the sport’s popularity in the United States. But the real legacy is the lesson that there is more power and honor in “wax on, wax off” than in “sweep the leg.”

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