UPDATE: Firstshowing has a couple of more photos which you can view below after the jump
We’ve seen the spy photos of the training and now People has the first official look at THE KARATE KID remake (it was once titled Kung Fu Kid) starring Will Smith’s son, Jaden Smith (The Pursuit Of Happyness) as the bullied youth and Jackie Chan as Mr. Han, who trains the kid to stand up for himself in an exotic Asian locale. The image is actually way, way smaller than the one you see above. Check out the movie’s first teaser art.
Sony is conducting test screenings this weekend, so we’ll hear soon enough what some lucky (or unlucky) members think of the new take on the 1984 classic starring Ralph Macchio and the late great Pat Morita…
Here’s the current plot..
Sherry is offered a transfer to China. Considering the U.S office is about to lay off everyone, it’s really her only choice; especially since nobody else at the office has been offered a transfer. With her young son Dre (Jaden Smith) in tow, the single-mother makes Beijing her new home. Needless to say, not knowing Chinese, and experiencing a bit of culture shock, they both find it a little hard to settle in – – Dre especially.
Like Daniel Larusso in the original film, Dre (who, unlike Larusso, is a skateboarding video-game buff) immediately catches the attention of the local bullies – in particular, Lui Wei Cheng. And before too long, Dre is going home with bruises (he tries to hide a black-eye under a cap by pulling it as far down his face as he can) and whining about wanting to return to the states.
Dre’s enrolled into a strict Beijing Middle School. His first day there is a bit of a shambles – the assistant principal spots his bruises, and assumes he’s been fighting (which, of course, they don’t accept under any circumstances), and he turns up in a school uniform, something he didn’t have to wear that day (there’s only certain days when a uniform is required).
The Mr Myiagi character is actually named Mr. Han (Jackie Chan). He’s the maintenance man of the apartment lock that Sherry and Dre have moved into, and meets the new residents when he’s called over to fix their hot water service. From the bathroom, Han spots Dre practicing martial-arts kicks (unsuccessfully) in front of a video-game, and catches his black eye. Later, of course, he’ll agree to teach him – both martial-arts and the Chinese language (so he can impress his mother by haggling over apples).
The ‘John Kreese’ character – the character played by Martin Kove in the original film – is Li Quan Ha, the owner of the Fighting dragon school of Kung-Fu. One visit to the school – in which Li Quan terrorizes his students (who range from the age of 3 onwards), namely Lui Wei Cheng – and Dre is immediately put off.
Oh, and yes, there’s a love interest – someone mother wants Dre to bring home for dinner.
THE KARATE KID opens June 11th, 2010
