The Next Karate Kid

1994

1h 44m

Kids & Family

Drama

List

Tomatometer

29 Reviews

24%

Audience Score

50,000+ Ratings

Karate master Mr. Miyagi (Noriyuki "Pat" Morita) goes to Boston to attend a military reunion. There, he visits with Louisa (Constance Towers), the widow of his former commander, and meets her granddaughter, Julie (Hilary Swank). Julie's parents were recently killed in a car accident, and she is still reeling from the loss. When Julie surprises Miyagi with her knowledge of karate, he takes her to a Buddhist monastery for training and to help her come to terms with her angst.

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Critics Consensus

The Next Karate Kid is noteworthy for giving audiences the chance to see a pre-Oscars Hilary Swank, but other than a typically solid performance from Pat Morita, this unnecessary fourth installment in the franchise has very little to offer.

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John Hartl

Seattle Times

The Next Karate Kid is harmless as children's entertainment, but for 104 very long minutes, there isn't a recognizable human being in sight.

Rated: 1.5/4

Jun 14, 2013

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Chris Willman

Los Angeles Times

The overt message of any Karate Kid movie: Don't fight unless you absolutely have to. The implicit message: You'll always have to. Let the smitings begin!

May 22, 2013

Full Review

Carrie Rickey

Philadelphia Inquirer

While the message that a girl can defend herself against the boys threatening her is a good one, it's lost in a movie where the bullies look like Mussolini's bodyguards and where Julie waits for her boyfriend and Miyagi to come to her defense.

Rated: 1.5/4

May 22, 2013

Full Review

Elisa Guimarães

Collider

The Next Karate Kid takes itself too seriously to take the deep dive into absurdity it needed to make its villains work, and the audience is left wondering why doesn’t the school administration just chime in.

Jan 29, 2024

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Mal Vincent

The Virginian-Pilot

Heavy-handed...

Rated: 2/4

Mar 1, 2022

Full Review

Felix Vasquez Jr.

Cinema Crazed

An irrelevant foot note in the "Karate Kid" series that can be overlooked if only for being so vanilla.

Aug 7, 2014

Full Review

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Erik B

Predictable and formulaic in the face of the greatness that was the original Karate Kid trilogy. Definitely a shame to end Mr. Miyagi's story this way.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

07/29/24

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B S

I watched all of the Karate kid movies to rewatch Cobra Kai and try to understand everything. This one was the worst by a lot. This one is completely unnecessary and not Hilary Swank's best performance. The bad guys don't even use karate and the movie gets a little creepy. So many questions too... Like who is this colonel guy and why is he beating up students multiple times? Why is Hilary Swank so angry and unlikeable in this film when she definitely has better performances? Why do the colonel's cronies all act super creepy? Why does Hilary Swank's caretaker just leave her with Mr. Miyagi? Why did Pat Morita agree to this movie like did he have a bad divorce or something? Do not watch. The only redeemable characters are the monks.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

07/13/24

Full Review

Rosana B

Com sabor saudosista, deliciosamente gostoso de assistir, pura nostalgia... Um roteiro simples e básico, seguindo a tradição da franquia, nesse apenas a realidade nua e crua, mulher, jovem, meninas, sub julgadas e abusadas por hetero top escroto, nem todo homem, mas sempre um homem... Hilary e Sr. Miyagi, que combinação perfeita... Muito bom... Envelheceu saudável, 30 aninhos... Inesquecível e muito bom...

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

04/14/24

Full Review

GOOMATIONS!

This movie was TERRIBLE. NEVER WATCH THIS!

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

02/18/24

Full Review

Rami A

What if a movie focused on Mr. Miyagi and his backstory was produced instead of this one?

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

10/15/23

Full Review

Ian S

... do I need to say It? It's just afawl

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

10/14/23

Full Review

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Christopher Cain

Director

Hilary Swank

Julie Pierce

Pat Morita

Sergeant Kesuke Miyagi

Michael Ironside

Colonel Dugan

Constance Towers

Louisa Pierce

Chris Conrad

Eric McGowen

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The Next Karate Kid: Official Clip - Karate Waltz