Movie Reviews
Karate Kid: Legends First Reviews: A Fast-Paced Feel-good Movie with a Breakout Star
For more than 40 years, the Karate Kid franchise has entertained fans with a four-film series, a remake-spinoff, and a TV show continuation. Now, the two best-reviewed movies of the bunch are crossing over for Karate Kid: Legends, with original star Ralph Macchio and the 2010 version’s Jackie Chan uniting to train the next martial arts hero, played by Ben Wang. The initial reception for the new installment is mixed, but most agree that it lives up to its past while making a star to watch out of Wang. Also, everyone seems to love Chan and Macchio together.
Here’s what critics are saying about Karate Kid: Legends:
How does it compare to the other installments?
Legends can hold its head as one of the best installments so far, better than Karate Kid (2010), but nothing on Karate Kid (1984).
— Jack Shepherd, Total Film
As far as Karate Kid movies go, this one can’t match the surprisingly elegant characterization of the first movie, but at 94 crisply paced minutes, it’s less distended than the shockingly overlong 2010 remake, and feels less obligatory than the old Macchio sequels.
— Jesse Hassenger, Paste Magazine
Karate Kid: Legends is a sensational sequel, building on the classic underdog framework of the original 1984 Karate Kid movie, while working in fresh fun, familiar faces, and a dazzling new talent.
— Kristy Puchko, Mashable
This is a fun, breezy adventure that nests right into the world of Karate Kid and largely delivers on the action, laughs, and heart fans love about the IP.
— Ben Wasserman, CBR
While the team-up may be fun for fans of previous Karate Kid movies and Cobra Kai, it also misses the emotional core of these coming-of-age stories.
— Matt Goldberg, The Wrap
[It] adds nothing original to the formula. It’s a formula that works, to be sure, making for a pleasant enough time filler. But that’s about it.
— Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter
Neither as fun as the early seasons of Cobra Kai nor as effective as the 2010 reboot, Karate Kid: Legends relies heavily on franchise favourites while bringing nothing new to the party.
— Tara Brady, Irish Times
Between the first couple of seasons of Cobra Kai and now Legends, The Karate Kid is the rare franchise that can boast one of the very best legacyquels as well as one of the worst.
— Matt Singer, Screen Crush
Does it fit in well with Cobra Kai?
The movie grows out of that show’s ebullient spirit.
— Owen Gleiberman, Variety
Much like Cobra Kai, Legends has a bit more to say beyond revisiting some Crane Kicking hits.
— Ben Wasserman, CBR
For anyone who’s seen Cobra Kai, [this has] a familiar format, echoing how LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence tried to teach their students both Miyagi-do and Eagle Fang.
— Jack Shepherd, Total Film
Karate Kid: Legends ignores essentially all the events of Cobra Kai… Fans hoping Karate Kid: Legends will continue its storyline in some way should adjust their expectations accordingly.
— Matt Singer, Screen Crush
How is the story?
The plot is a “paint by the numbers,” generic story…It is also a stereotypical, “feel good” movie where one roots for the underdog and isn’t disappointed in the end.
— Allison Rose, FlickDirect
So simple, so unironic, so cheesy-sincere, so analog that you may feel it transporting you right back to the “innocence” of the ’80s. And that’s the best thing about Karate Kid: Legends.
— Owen Gleiberman, Variety
This is a surprisingly self-contained story all about Li, and a darn good one at that.
— Aidan Kelley, Collider
Turning the formula on its head where the young person will train an older person is a nice twist that still adheres to the standard beats of learning martial arts as material necessity and personal growth.
— Matt Goldberg, The Wrap
Karate Kid: Legends is like the IKEA instruction booklet for making a Karate Kid movie: a marvel of abbreviated, gestural storytelling that should be taught in schools as an example of what a perfectly structured script looks like.
— Walter Chaw, Film Freak Central
This latest installment goes way beyond recycling the basic premise… They might as well have called it Karate Kid: Déjà Vu.
— Matt Singer, Screen Crush
The plot is just awful, crammed with so many cliches that you’re barely done chuckling at one before another kicks you in the head.
— Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter
Does it play better for older fans or newer audiences?
Older audiences will reminisce about watching Macchio play the Karate Kid. In comparison, younger audiences will enjoy the story and Ben Wang’s skills as an actor and martial artist.
— Allison Rose, FlickDirect
It’s certainly a crowd-pleasing film that will make you feel good all the way through, no matter how long you’ve been with the franchise.
— Mae Abdulbaki, Screen Rant
Setting the movie years after Cobra Kai certainly helps sell the movie to casual fans, allowing them to get into the story without having to cram six seasons of television into their heads in advance.
— Ben Wasserman, CBR
The movie ultimately chooses to work for its young audience more than its potentially nostalgic (or puzzled) parents.
— Jesse Hassenger, Paste Magazine
Karate Kid: Legends [is] a movie that understands its identity but still feels forced to cater to older fans in a way that neglects how well the film works for its target audience of younger viewers.
— Matt Goldberg, The Wrap
Starting off with a clip from 1986’s The Karate Kid Part II… there are numerous callbacks to past installments, and the end credits feature a cameo by one more franchise veteran.
— Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter
How is the pacing?
Karate Kid: Legends is a movie that, for better and worse, doesn’t let up, offering you no chance to catch a breath.
— Jack Shepherd, Total Film
At a cool hour and 34 minutes, the film understands what it means to keep a story tight and moving.
— Mae Abdulbaki, Screen Rant
Working in Karate Kid: Legends‘ favor is how it’s cut and paced a lot like Jeff Rowe’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem. It’s jaunty and light.
— Walter Chaw, Film Freak Central
The moment Daniel LaRusso is introduced, Karate Kid: Legends begins sprinting towards its closing moments at a jarring, breakneck pace.
— Aidan Kelley, Collider
Legends barely lasts 90 minutes, and it often feels like it’s been severely truncated in the editing room until all that remained were the training montages and fight scenes.
— Matt Singer, Screen Crush
And the martial arts action?
The fight scenes are well-choreographed and entertaining.
— Mae Abdulbaki, Screen Rant
For those who are fans of action sequences and especially Karate and Kung Fu, they should especially be pleased with what first-time feature film director Jonathan Entwistle has done to showcase the art form.
— Allison Rose, FlickDirect
[The movie is] designed to give you that “This is not your father’s Ralph Macchio fairy tale!” feeling.
— Owen Gleiberman, Variety
There’s some brilliant choreography on display, especially during one back-alley brawl that sees Li take on a bunch of ruffians. Yet, other fights are cut too fast, and some fancy camera work stops certain hits from having the impact they should.
— Jack Shepherd, Total Film
The fight sequences in Karate Kid: Legends can occasionally feel over-edited with one too many cuts and some creatively distracting animated additions, but on the whole, the fight choreography and stunt-work on display feels more elaborate than any of the prior films.
— Aidan Kelley, Collider
The fights are well-done, but nowhere near as crazy as what people saw on the Netflix series.
— Ben Wasserman, CBR
The fight choreography is passable but never impressive, and an over-reliance on shaky quick cuts drains out some much needed physicality. It doesn’t help that there’s surprisingly few of them.
— Wilson Chapman, IndieWire
Does it work as a comedy?
It is incredibly funny with plenty of laugh-out-loud moments that land at the right place and at the right time.
— Allison Rose, FlickDirect
Karate Kid: Legends had me laughing.
— Kristy Puchko, Mashable
How is Ben Wang?
Ben Wang is a great new lead for this series, not just for some stellar martial arts skills, but also for his almost effortless charisma and lovable personality.
— Aidan Kelley, Collider
He’s lithe and captivating.
— Owen Gleiberman, Variety
The young actor exudes an electric, everyman appeal.
— Ben Truitt, USA Today
Wang is excellent not only as an actor but as a student of martial arts.
— Allison Rose, FlickDirect
Wang carries on Chan’s legacy by performing action skillfully while being funny.
— Kristy Puchko, Mashable
An early fight sequence positions Wang to be an able inheritor of Chan’s prop-heavy, comedic, hero-who-gets-hurt style, and he himself is a charming, effortless sort with a touch of ineffable star power.
— Walter Chaw, Film Freak Central
There’s a natural charisma and vulnerability to Wang that lends itself well to Li’s journey… He’s also got a bit of an edge that, like Daniel in the original Karate Kid, defies the usual tropes of a picked-on teenage protagonist.
— Ben Wasserman, CBR
What about the Ralph Macchio-Jackie Chan team-up?
Watching them spar with Wang and each other is a treat to behold. There is a joy in watching them on screen together that audiences, young and old, will love.
— Allison Rose, FlickDirect
This tag-team of combat gurus turns out to be an ace comedy team.
— Owen Gleiberman, Variety
The few moments where Han and LaRusso bicker over how to teach Li are highlights, albeit underutilized ones.
— Aidan Kelley, Collider
When Chan and Macchio share the screen, it is an absolute joy… It’s such a fun dynamic that you cannot help but partly begrudge the writers for not giving Chan and Macchio more to do.
— Jack Shepherd, Total Film
Are there any other standouts in the cast?
Sadie Stanley… acts with an eagerly ingenuous personality that feels entirely pre-social media, to the point that she evokes the Ally Sheedy of WarGames. (Yes, that’s a high compliment; keep an eye out for Sadie Stanley.)
— Owen Gleiberman, Variety
Though he’s in a minor role, Wyatt Oleff is a scene-stealer as Alan, Li’s tutor.
— Mae Abdulbaki, Screen Rant
Does the movie have a villain problem?
Like William Zabka back in the day, Knight nicely inhabits the unstoppable karate villain role, though the movie begs to spend a little more time with him.
— Ben Truitt, USA Today
The film’s villains are a bit of a low point… one-dimensional even by Karate Kid standards.
— Aidan Kelley, Collider
Connor and O’Shea feel like afterthoughts in a way other Karate Kid antagonists didn’t, albeit for more over-the-top reasons pre-Cobra Kai.
— Ben Wasserman, CBR
Karate Kid: Legends opens in theaters on May 30, 2025.
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(Credits: Far Out / Elevation Pictures)
Maxime Giroux – ‘In Cold Light’
The action is relentless in the complex thriller In Cold Light, a tense combination of crime and fugitive tale and family drama. It is the third feature and first English language film by Maxime Giroux, best known for a very different kind of film, the critically acclaimed 2014 drama Felix & Meira.
The tension and high energy of In Cold Light almost overwhelm the film, but are relieved, barely, by moments of character development and introspection that keep the audience pulling for the restrained and outwardly cold main character.
Speaking at the film’s Canadian premiere, director Giroux admitted he found creating an action film a challenge. Part of his approach was using very minimal dialogue, especially for the central character, letting the action speak for itself, and allowing silence to intensify suspense. Giroux has said he likes the lack of dialogue and speaks highly of the importance of silence in cinema; he prefers using “physical aspects of communication” in his films.
Young Ava Bly (Maika Monroe) is a competent and businesslike drug dealer, working in partnership with her brother Tom (Jesse Irving) and a small team. As the film begins, Ava has just been released from a brief prison sentence. She is hoping to return to her former position, but her brother’s associates consider her a risk due to her recent incarceration. While she works to re-establish herself, a shocking encounter with a corrupt police officer sends Ava’s life into chaos and forces her to go on the run.
Ava’s fugitive experience introduces a new character, to whom Ava turns for help: her father, Will Bly, played by Troy Kotsur, known for his excellent performance in CODA. Their first interaction is handled in a fascinating way, as Will is deaf and the two communicate through sign language. This, of course, provides another form of the silent interaction the director prefers; he explained that much of the father-daughter interaction was rewritten with the actor in mind. Their conflict is nicely expressed through a scene in which their initial conversation is intermittently cut off by a faulty light which goes out periodically, making communication through sign momentarily impossible, nicely expressing the rift between father and daughter.
As Ava continues to evade danger, her escape becomes complicated by new information, placing her in a painful dilemma. We gradually learn more about Ava, her background, and her character through occasional flashbacks and glimpses of her dreams. The plot becomes more complex and more poignant, and gains features of a mystery as well as an action tale, as she is pressed to choose from among equally unacceptable alternatives.
The climax of her efforts to protect both herself and those close to her comes to a head as she meets with the director of a rival drug gang. Veteran actress Helen Hunt is perfect in the minor but significant role of Claire, the rival drug lord, who plays odd mind games with Ava in an intriguing psychological fencing match. It’s an unusual scene, in which Ava’s personality is made clearer, and Claire’s understated dominance and casual speech do not quite conceal the threat she represents.
The frantic pace and emotional turmoil are enhanced by the camera work, which tends to focus tightly on Ava, and by a harsh, minimal musical score that sets the tone without distracting from the action. Giroux chose to shoot the film in Super 60; he describes digital as “too perfect” for the look he was going for, and since “Ava is rough,” the film portrays her better. The director describes the entire movie as “rough,” in fact, and deliberately chose a dark, washed-out look for much of the footage, occasionally using light and colour, in the form of fireworks, lightning, or a colourful carnival, to both relieve and emphasise the darkness.
The dynamic, intense story holds the attention in spite of the lengthy, sometimes repetitive chase scenes and subdued dialogue. Ava’s predicament, and the difficult decisions she is forced to make, are made surprisingly relatable, from the initial disaster that starts the action to the surprising flash-forward that concludes the film, on as high a note as the situation could allow. Fans of action movies will definitely enjoy this one.
PopHorror had the chance to check out Anacoreta (2022) ahead of its streaming release! Does this meta-horror flick provide interesting story telling or is it a confusing mess.
Let’s have a look…
Synopsis
A group of friends heads to a secluded woodland cabin for a weekend getaway, planning to film an experimental horror movie. As the shoot progresses, the project begins to fall apart—until a real and terrifying presence emerges from the darkness.
Anacoreta is directed by Jeremy Schuetze. It was written by Jeremy Schuetze and Matt Visser. The film stars Antonia Thomas (Bagman 2024), Jesse Stanley (Raf 2019), Jeremy Schuetze (Jennifer’s Body 2009), and Matt Visser (A Lot Like Christmas 2021)
My Thoughts
Antonia Thomas delivered an outstanding performance as the female lead in Anacoreta. It was remarkable to watch her convey such a wide range of emotions with authenticity and depth. I was continually impressed by her ability to switch seamlessly between different dialects. I absolutely loved her delivery of the dialogue of telling The Scorpion and the Frog fable.
Anacoreta employs a distinctive, meta-horror style of storytelling. The narrative follows a group of friends creating a “scripted reality” horror film, and as the plot unfolds, the boundary between their staged production and their actual lives becomes increasingly blurred. This was interesting, but at the same time frustrating as a viewer.
Check out Anacoreta on Prime Video and let us know your thoughts!
“So it’s like Avatar?” one character quips in Disney and Pixar’s “Hoppers,” bluntly translating the film’s high-concept premise for the sugar-fueled kids in the audience. And yes, the comparison is apt. The story follows a nature-obsessed teenage girl who manages to quite literally “hop” her consciousness into the body of a robotic beaver in order to spark an animal rebellion against a greedy mayor determined to bulldoze their forest for a freeway.
It’s a clever hook. The kind of big, elastic idea Pixar used to make look effortless. “Hoppers” does not reach the rarified air of “Up,” “Wall-E,” or “Inside Out,” but after a stretch of uneven originals like “Turning Red” and “Luca,” and outright misfires such as “Elemental” and “Elio,” this feels like a genuine course correction. The environmental messaging is clear without being preachy, the animals are irresistibly anthropomorphized, and the studio’s once-signature emotional sincerity is back in sturdy form.
Pixar can afford to gamble on originals when it has a guaranteed cash cow like this summer’s “Toy Story 5” waiting in the wings, but “Hoppers” earns its place in the catalogue. Director Daniel Chong crafts a warm, heartfelt film that occasionally strains under the weight of its own ambition, yet remains grounded by character and theme. Its meditation on conservation and animal displacement feels timely in a way that never tips into after-school-special territory.
We meet Mabel, voiced with bright conviction by Piper Curda, as a child liberating her classroom pets and returning them to the wild. Her moral compass is shaped by her grandmother, voiced by Karen Huie, who imparts wisdom about nature’s sanctity. True to both Pixar tradition and the broader Disney playbook, this beacon of guidance does not survive past the opening act. Loss, after all, is Pixar’s favorite inciting incident.
Years later, Mabel is still fighting the good fight, squaring off against the smarmy Mayor Jerry, voiced with slick menace by Jon Hamm. He plans to flatten the glade where Mabel and her grandmother once found solace. Mabel’s resistance feels noble but futile. The animals have already mysteriously vanished, the machinery is coming, and her last-ditch plan involves luring a beaver back to the abandoned forest in hopes of jumpstarting the ecosystem.
That’s when the film gleefully pivots into mad-scientist territory. At Beaverton University, Mabel discovers her professor, voiced by Kathy Najimy, has developed a device that can project human consciousness into synthetic animals. The process, dubbed “hopping,” allows Mabel to inhabit a robotic beaver and infiltrate the forest from within. It’s an inspired escalation that keeps the film buoyant even when the plotting grows predictable.
Her new posse includes King George, a lovably beaver voiced by Bobby Moynihan with distinct Bing Bong energy; a sharp-tongued bear voiced by Melissa Villaseñor; a regal bird king voiced by the late Isiah Whitlock Jr.; and a fish queen voiced by Ego Nwodim. As is often the case with Pixar, even in its lesser efforts, the world-building is meticulous. The animal hierarchy, complete with titles like “paw of the king,” is layered with jokes that play for kids while slyly winking at adults.
The plot ultimately follows a familiar template. Scrappy underdog rallies community. Corporate villain twirls metaphorical mustache. Emotional third-act sacrifice looms. At times, you can feel the machinery working a little too cleanly. Pixar, and Disney at large, has grown increasingly reliant on sequels and established IP, and “Hoppers” does not radically reinvent the wheel. In an animated landscape where films like “K-Pop: Demon Hunters,” “Across the Spider-Verse,” and “Goat” are pushing stylistic and narrative boundaries, being safe and sturdy may not always be enough.
And yet, there is something refreshing about a Pixar original that remembers how to tug at the heart without squeezing it dry. “Hoppers” is playful, peppered with cheeky needle drops, and builds to a sweet emotional catharsis that may or may not have left this critic a little misty-eyed. It feels earnest and engaged.
“Hoppers” may not be top-tier Pixar. But it is a welcome return to form, a reminder that the studio still knows how to marry big ideas with a bigger heart.
HOPPERS opens in theaters Friday, March 6th.
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