Karate Kid: Legends

2025

Jonathan Entwistle

Ben Wang, Jackie Chan, Ralph Macchio, Joshua Jackson ...

5.4

3,556

Action. Drama. Comedy

Action. Drama. Comedy

After a family tragedy, kung fu prodigy Li Fong (Ben Wang) is uprooted from his home in Beijing and forced to move to New York City with his mother. Li struggles to let go of his past as he tries to fit in with his new classmates, and although he doesn't want to fight, trouble seems to find him everywhere. When a new friend needs his help, Li enters a karate competition – but his skills alone aren't enough. Li's kung fu teacher Mr. Han ... [+]

	Media	Author	Review
		Matt Zoller Seitz rogerebert.com	"Impressive and exasperating in its determination to squeeze every previous iteration of this story (...) Yes, there is an incredibly difficult finishing move. Every Karate Kid movie has one. When Li decided the time was right to use his, I cheered like everyone else. There’s a reason why this tale keeps getting retold: it’s foolproof. (...) Rating: ★★½ (out of 4)"
		Andrew Lawrence The Guardian	"It’s warm, it’s breezy – it’s a burst of summery family fun that is sure to inspire long looks back at the old movies and Cobra Kai episodes (...) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"
		Frank Scheck The Hollywood Reporter	"Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio Return for a Messy and Uninspired Addition to the Franchise (...) the plot is just awful"
		Owen Gleiberman Variety	"It’s a film that’s unapologetically basic and wholesome and, at 94 minutes, refreshingly stripped down. "
		Wilson Chapman IndieWire	"In the pantheon of unnecessary legacy sequels, it’s hard to come up with a film that gains less from its connections to the work it’s tied to than 'Karate Kid: Legends'"
		Eric Goldman IGN	"A misguided attempt to maintain an unrelentingly high energy from start to finish that ends up making it feel emotionally hollow because it almost never takes time to slow down and breathe (...) Rating: 6 (out of 10)"
		Johnny Oleksinski New York Post	"'Legends' is the latest in a long line of terrible 'Karate Kid' movies. A passing of the torch, such as it is, to the next inferior rip-off. (...) Rating: ★ (out of 4)"
		Adam Nayman Toronto Star	"[It] feels at times like four or five different movies being chopped-and-screwed together, albeit at an enjoyably fast pace, and with a minimum of narrative drag (...) Rating: ★★ (out of 4)"
		Marko Djurdjic' Exclaim!	"Miyagi's legacy deserves better than this (...) Rating: ★★★ (out of 10)"
		Mae Abdulbaki Screen Rant	"Wildly Entertaining & Charming, Legends Proves The Karate Kid Franchise Has Not Yet Lost Its Spark (...) Rating: 7 (out of 10)"
		James Berardinelli ReelViews	"It has all the earmarks of something made by a fan primarily for fans, but it feels rushed and unfinished with storylines that are compressed and ultimately left feeling only half-finished (...) Rating: ★★ (out of 4)"
		Bilge Ebiri Vulture	"I can’t imagine anyone remembering [this film] four decades from now. Or next week"
		Dan Jolin Empire	"'Karate Kid: Legends' doesn’t quite live up to the promise of its Cobra Kai-meets-Mr Han marketing. But for breezy feel-goodness, you’ve come to the right dojo." (...) Rating: ★★★ (out of 5)"
		Sandie Angulo Chen Common Sense Media	"It's not perfect, but this is still a feel-good crowd-pleaser that blends themes from earlier installments with two times the mentors and a charming new martial artist at its center"
		Kyle Smith The Wall Street Journal	"Instead, it’s more like an outline whose details the filmmakers never got around to filling in"
		Aidan Kelley Collider	"'Karate Kid: Legends' marks a very strong addition to the relatively early careers of a promising filmmaker a movie star who has the potential to be the best... around. (...) Rating: 7 (out of 10)"
		G. Allen Johnson San Francisco Chronicle	"[It] is steeped in nostalgia, which helps paper over a formulaic script and the strange reality that its domestic scenes are more effective than its fight action (...) Rating: ★★½ (out of 4)"
		David Fear Rolling Stone	"Everyone [who is not a fan] will just feel like tempted to sweep the legs of everyone trying to cash in on a recently revived franchise and wring it dry"
		Mel Valentin Screen Anarchy	"[Ben] Wang makes for a winning lead, carrying the heavier exposition-laden moments and the lighter ones with virtual ease"
		Brianna Zigler AV Club	"[It] is actually an enjoyable little film"

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