So you loved Karate Kid in 1984, but how will it compare to the 2010 Karate Kid? If the box office is anything to go by Karate Kid 2010 is going to be even more successful than the 1984 version of Karate Kid.

Here are some comparisons between the original Karate Kid of 1984 and the 2010 Karate Kid, but there were also Karate Kid 2 and 3 in 1986 and 1989, as well as a lesser known The Next Karate Kid in 1994 which starred Hilary Swank as a young martial arts student.

Karate Kid Box Office Success

The original Karate Kid grossed an overall revenue of $90,815,558 and the 2010 Karate Kid 4 has already made $210,027,442 in it's first few weeks, the final gross revenue of Karate Kid 4 is yet unknown.

Differences in the Karate Kid Film Plots

In Karate Kid 1 and Karate Kid 4 the protagonist is a young boy of high school age who moves with his mother to a new location and encounters bullies. Then with the help of a mentor and teacher of martial arts the boy manages to stand up for himself and protect himself. Finally in both the karate films the lead character competes in a martial arts competition. The plot of the two Karate Kid films is very similar but there are a few slight differences.

The original Karate Kid was set in California, America where as the 2010 version is set in China, this opens itself up to beautiful photo opportunities of the Chinese culture and landscape.

The protagonist in the original Karate Kid was white as were the bullies he was up against, and in the 2010 version he is African American fighting off Chinese bullies. This has lead to a heated discussion about racial issues in the film and how Asians are portrayed.

In the 2010 Karate Kid there are similar "wax on ,wax off" lines as in the 1984 film when the master is training his student but in 2010 it is a case of "jacket on, jacket off". Something tells me we will remember the original line in the long run.

Karate Kid Cast

In the original Karate Kid, Ralph Macchio who played the lead was 23 years old at the time, and in the 2010 version the lead is played by the Jaden Smith who is only 12 years old. As with all kinds of modern equality along with women, children have gained more respect and power in the intervening 26 years. Today there is no shortage of independent or officially emancipated child stars. However Jaden's celebrity parents, dad Will Smith was keeping a close eye on his son during the making of the film as Will Smith and his wife Jada produced the film.

The 1984 martial arts mentor and teacher in the first Karate Kid was portrayed as older and Japanese where as the 2010 version stars Jackie Chan as a Chinese Kung Fu expert.

Kung Fu Kid versus Karate Kid

Karate Kid 4 should actually be called Kung Fu Kid as unlike Karate Kid 1 where the martial art taught to the young boy was Karate which originates in Japan, in the 2010 version of the film Kung Fu is used. Kung Fu is a Chinese martial art, for this reason in China the film will be known as "the Kung Fu Dream" and in Japan and Korea the film will be marketed as The Best Kid.

Karate Kid Music

In the original Karate Kid movie the music was provided by Bill Conti and featured songs were performed by various famous and about to be famous artists like Bananarama. The most well known song from the 1984 Karate Kid is Joe Esposito's "You're The Best".

But in the 2010 film the lead actor, Jaden Smith has a hand in the musical side of the film. Jaden Smith sings the film's song "never Say Never" with teen idol Justin Bieber. Jack Chan is also a well known singer in Asia.

Kids of all ages will enjoy the new Karate Kid as they will not have experienced the original when it was released. Why not rent the 1984 Karate Kid on DVD and watch it with your kids before seeing the latest version, it's fun to note how our culture, fashions and even language have changed over the last 26 years.

For adults who have fond memories of the original Karate Kid you will also enjoy the film, and if nothing else you can give your kids a running commentary of why your "real" Karate Kid was better.