By Bob Fischbach
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

Since director Harald Zwart's remake of “The Karate Kid” is a mixed bag of pluses and minuses, let's start with what he got right.

The martial-arts tournament at the end had a Wednesday night preview audience alternately cheering and expressing awe at some of the amazing feats executed by young actors. It was exciting, even if you knew how it would turn out.

Jackie Chan, an international star known for great kung-fu moves and ham-fisted acting, surprises by consistently underplaying Mr. Han, the apartment-house maintenance man who becomes a mentor and martial-arts teacher to a bullied boy. Chan is especially effective in a scene where he bears his soul about a tragic event that crushed his spirit.

And Jaden Smith, 11-year-old son of movie stars Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, does a fine job in the lead role of Dre Parker. His romance with a young Chinese girl, Meiying (Wenwen Han), has an innocent appeal, and he has a flair for comedic moments (chip off Dad's block).

But am I the only one who finds watching an 11-year-old getting the stuffing kicked out of him uncomfortable to watch?

In the original “Karate Kid,” Ralph Macchio was a teen verging on manhood. Seeing him get his lights punched out was hard, but not as hard as with Smith, who is slightly built and looks young for his age.

And something's wrong with having a karate kid who doesn't know karate, a Japanese art. Kung-fu is Chinese.

While the 1984 version of the movie forced the kid to move from the East Coast to the West when his mom got a new job, Zwart's remake has mom being transferred from Detroit to China. That introduces a theme of race that was not in the earlier movie, along with the martial art that doesn't fit the title.

Zwart uses his new location to maximum benefit by turning “The Karate Kid” into a travelogue of China. Scenes shot on the Great Wall, in the Forbidden City, at the Olympic stadium and in other picturesque locales look nice, but they also stretch this bloated movie past 2 hours and 15 minutes.

The result is that it takes too long for us to get to that climactic tournament ending.

The bully's kung-fu teacher, head of a martial-arts school, has such a black soul (“Your enemy does not deserve mercy!”) he belongs in a melodrama. And Oscar nominee Taraji P. Henson, as Dre's mother, is largely wasted.

But the movie does a pretty good job of retaining the underdog story of the original, even if Chan doesn't inspire the same warm, fuzzy feeling that Pat Morita did back in 1984. The heart of the movie is still here. Mom changes jobs. Kid runs into trouble with bullies. Taciturn maintenance man teaches him to defend himself, but not to wage war.

When Mr. Han's first lesson forces Dre to repeatedly take his jacket off, drop it, pick it up and hang it up, the earlier version's conditioning moves (wax on, wax off) pop into memory.

For those old enough to recall the original, this movie won't quite measure up, even if the 1984 movie fell short of greatness.

But for all those experiencing “The Karate Kid” for the first time, Zwart's version gets enough moves right to overcome that long, scenic training montage.

***
Other movies out now:

Killers (PG-13) Ashton Kutcher plays a government assassin who hangs up his job when he falls for Katherine Heigl in this romance-thriller. But his violent past finds him in the affluent suburbs, surprising them both. A bit bland, less hip than the similar 'Mr. and Mrs. Smith.' Expect a dash of profanity, violence and offscreen sex. 2 stars.

Get Him to the Greek (PG-13) This gross-out comedy sequel of sorts to "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" finds record-company rep Jonah Hill trying to get out-of-control rock star Russell Brand to a live concert on time. Coarse but funny, with misadventures involving sex, drugs, mayhem and bodily fluids that push the PG-13 envelope hard. 3 stars.

The Good Heart (R) A bitter, nasty bar owner with a bad heart (Brian Cox) takes in a suicidal homeless young man (Paul Dano) with an idea of willing him the bar. But when a woman wanders into the picture, all bets are off. A false, manipulative ending spoils things unless you're really sentimental. Horrific language, no sex or nudity. 2 stars.

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (PG-13) Jake Gyllenhaal stars in this medieval tale of extreme action with little in the way of character depth or story. Romance takes a back seat to heaps of violence and hyper editing, plus a gymnastic approach to chase scenes. A magic dagger is an excuse for special effects. A fairly harmless 2 stars.

Sex and the City 2 (R) Graphic sex, nudity and language make this unsuitable for younger teens. If you know the HBO series, you know New York columnist Carrie and friends like sexual freedom, spicy language and adult themes. 2.5 stars.

Splice (R) Cool special effects elevate this science-fiction thriller about gene-splicing scientists (Adrien Brody, Sarah Polley) who create new species. They cross ethical lines by secretly using human DNA and misusing their new creature. Strong sexuality, nudity, violence. For oldest, most mature teens only. 2 stars.

Everyone Else (Unrated, likely R) A young professional German couple struggles to achieve true intimacy while on vacation in Sardinia, but running into a happier couple causes conflict to bubble up. Excellent character study includes profanity, explicit sex between unmarrieds. In German, subtitled. 3 stars.

MacGruber (R) Will Forte turns his SNL skits spoofing the TV secret-agent series "MacGuyver" into a movie. Bad hair, bad tunes and bad sex turn out not to be all that funny. Nothing here kids should see, or adults should pay for. 1.5 stars.

The Square (R) An Australian noir thriller in which a construction site supervisor is having an affair with a hairdresser. Her brutal husband's stash of stolen cash becomes the catalyst to try to break away. Instead things go horribly wrong. Decent script, fine acting, some graphic violence. For mature older teens only. 3 stars.

Shrek Forever After (PG) Mixed reviews suggest this is neither the best nor the worst of the four Shrek movies, but certainly one families can enjoy together without much to worry about. Shrek learns what life would have been like if he'd never met and married Fiona.

Babies (PG) A charming documentary follows babies in four different corners of the globe -- Mongolia, San Francisco, Namibia, Tokyo -- from birth to first steps. Great visual storytelling, with humor and insight. Fine family fare.

The Secret of Kells (Unrated, probably PG) Fantastic 2-D animation bursting with color, line and great composition makes this a winner for age 8 and up. The story about a tweener in a medieval Irish abbey is kid stuff, but the message about the importance of knowledge to combat blunt force isn't. Neither is the Oscar-nominated artwork. 3 stars.

Iron Man 2 (PG-13) Not as substantive as the original, but enough action and special effects to satisfy kids and comic book fans. Robert Downey Jr, in the title role, and Scarlett Johansson, as a secret agent, stand out. So does the fine sense of humor on display, thanks to director Jon Favreau. Violence, substance abuse and a bit of profanity. 3 stars.

Bob Fischbach reviews movies and theater for the World-Herald.