Movie Analysis

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Movie Analysis: The Karate Kid
How does one feel starting a new life in an entirely new residence? In the “Karate Kid” movie, Daniel and his mom are seen to have relocated to California from New Jersey since his mother had secured a new Job in New Jersey (Zwart et al.). Due to the relocation, Daniel is enrolled in a new school where he was bullied by a group of boys who knew how to fight using the Karate technique. The continued mistreatment forces Daniel to start learning Karate fighting technique. In the process, he met Mr. Miyagi, a Hyndman at the apartment he was staying with his mother, who was very good in Karate. Mr. Miyagi accepted to teach him how to fight using Karate technique, and other than just being his karate teacher, he became his best friend since Daniel found it hard to make new friends (Zwart et al.).
Trying to discover oneself seems complex to many people. However, each person has a different perspective about identity (Griffin, Adams and Little 189-196). In the “Karate Kid” movie, Daniel did not know who he was or what he can do until he relocated to a different area and faced challenges that made him make alternative decisions to adapt to that environment (Zwart et al.). On the other hand, Mr. Miyagi was just a Hyndman at Daniel’s apartment, but after meeting Daniel, he realizes that he is also an outstanding Karate teacher who can also have an impact on the life of a young boy (Koester and Lustig 20-21). As a karate teacher, Mr.

Miyagi uses different techniques such as sanding wooden floor, and washing and waxing cars, to teach Daniel the Karate movements. Hard work and determination drove Daniel to become an outstanding karate fighter, to the extent that he won the “All Valley Karate Championship,” defeating the same boys who used to bully him during his first days at school. This is clear evidence that when a teacher teaches students to work hard, they learn to use hard work to achieve their goal, but when the teacher teaches how to cheat, the student will just learn how to cheat (West and Turner 73). In a conversation between Mr. Miyagi and Daniel, Miyagi states “Teacher say, Student do.” (Zwart et al.) The statement portrays just how a teacher is very crucial in brightening the future of a student. Throughout the entire movie, there is clear evidence that cheating is not the best way of achieving victory, and one can achieve more through hard work. Moreover, it is evident that moving into a new location is quite challenging, but after making some friends and learning some lessons, one can settle in another new location at any point in his or her life (Pradeep, Torkil and Kumar 81).
Works Cited
Griffin, Luther K., Nicole Adams, and Todd D. Little. “Self Determination Theory, Identity Development, and Adolescence.” Development of Self-Determination through the Life-Course. Springer, Dordrecht, 2017. 189-196.
Koester, Jolene, and Myron W. Lustig. “Intercultural communication competence: Theory, measurement, and application.” International Journal of Intercultural Relations 48 (2015): 20-21.
West, Richard, and Lynn H. Turner. Understanding interpersonal communication: Making choices in changing times. Cengage learning, 2010.
Yammiyavar, Pradeep, Torkil Clemmensen, and Jyoti Kumar. “Influence of cultural background on non-verbal communication in a usability testing situation.” International Journal of Design 2.2 (2008).
Zwart, Harald et al. “The Karate Kid (2010).” Imdb, 2018, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1155076/.