[yasr_overall_rating]
When a troubled teen from Cleveland experiences bullying in Cocoa Beach, he soon learns Martial Arts to gain confidence and self-defense skills.
While the title and story for “The Martial Arts Kid” is taken right out of “The Karate Kid,” about a troubled young teen who discovers his new town’s local bullies and resorts to martial arts to defend himself, it is the amalgamation of action stars and heartfelt performances by the film’s two young leads, Jansen Panettiere and Kathryn Newton, that elevates this story from mediocrity, to enjoyable family fun.
After Robbie (Panettiere) gets into trouble, again, with the police in his hometown in Ohio, where he lives with his grandmother, he is relocated to Cocoa Beach in Florida, where he moves in with his aunt Cindy (Cynthia Rothrock), uncle Glen (Don Wilson) and cousin Katie (Kayley Stallings). No sooner has he landed than he meets the town’s local bully Bo (Matthew Ziff), after striking up a conversation with his girlfriend Rina (Newton). He ends up on the ground with a black eye and a bruised ego and it’s not long before the situation becomes consistent. As Robbie and Rina connect and become friends, he discovers that aunt Cindy and uncle Glen own a martial arts club in town where they are black belt teachers. Initially hesitant to join, he reluctantly does so and benefits from it, not just physically, but also mentally, from the teachings and lessons taught to him by Cindy and Glen.
After Rina breaks up with Bo, he confronts her outside a gas station and threatens her and it is at this point in the film, that after months of training, Robbie tracks him down, where he is at his own martial arts club, and defends not just his honor, but that of the woman he loves.
“The Martial Arts Kid” is one big bully campaign, and I’m okay with that. Bullying is a worldwide epidemic that affects people from all walks of life, young and old, and the movie shows that it is not okay to be bullied, and to accept it as normal behavior. Some people resort to karate and other forms of physical self defense to help them cope, others seek positive role models in their lives which helps them build a support network, and this can help with a person’s body image or lack of self confidence.
The movie shows these aspects throughout the story and what better way to stand up to your bullies than to physically fight them, one on one? Not that violence is the answer, but sometimes, you must fight fire with fire. Growing up in the ’70s and ’80s, I was a big fan of Cynthia Rothrock, she was one of the first leading ladies of martial arts with such classics as “China O’Brien,” “China O’Brien II” and “Undefeatable,” while Don ‘The Dragon’ Wilson kick-boxed his way through “Bloodfist” and its seven sequels, along with parts in “Batman Forever” and “The Scorpion King 4: Quest for Power.” While the movie centers mostly on the younger generation, there are a few scenes added, just so we can see that Ms. Rothrock and Mr. Wilson can still kick butt.
Jansen Panettiere, the younger brother of Hayden Panettiere, plays the central role of Robbie, a misguided teen with no direction in his life, with great aplomb and deft realization. He leads a very capable cast and while each character gets their moment to shine, he slowly chews up the scenery around them, proving that talent does indeed run in his family.
Available on Blu-ray, DVD & Digital July 19th
