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  Directed by
  Starring
  Specs
  • Widescreen 1.85:1
  • 16:9 Enhanced
  Languages
  • English: Dolby Digital Surround
  • French: Dolby Digital Surround
  • Spanish: Dolby Digital Surround
  • German: Dolby Digital Surround
  • Italian: Dolby Digital Surround
  Subtitles
    English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Hebrew, Czech, Greek, Polish, Hungarian, Dutch, Arabic, Portuguese, Turkish, Icelandic, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Hindi, Bulgarian
  Extras
  • 2 Theatrical trailer
  • Featurette
  • DVD-ROM features - Three games
  • Filmographies

The Karate Kid Part II

Columbia Pictures/Sony Pictures Home Entertainment . R4 . COLOR . 109 mins . PG . PAL

  Feature
Contract

The Karate Kid Part II literally begins where The Karate Kid finished, at the karate tournament where Daniel Larusso (Ralph Macchio) triumphed, the All Valley Karate Tournament. The action quickly jumps six months ahead, and things are pretty much rolling along, although Daniel's girlfriend has dumped him, his Mum is moving to Fresno to take up a new job, and Mr. Miyagi (Noriyuki 'Pat' Morita) has received word that his father, back in Japan, is dying.

Daniel wisely decides to give Fresno a miss, and accompanies Mr. Miyagi to Okinanawa, where things are not as they seem. Sure, Miyagi's father is dying, but it is not just his family that is pleased to see him back 'home'. Many years earlier, Miyagi had a secret sweetheart, but this sweetheart was 'promised' to another, his best friend, Sato (Danny Kamekona). Like Miyagi, Sato is a karate champion taught by Miyagi's father and now a successful, though ruthless, businessman. Unfortunately, Miyagi openly declared his love for his sweetheart and fled to the USA. His sweetheart refused to marry against her wishes, and now it is time for Sato to reclaim his honour, and fight Miyagi to the death.

Although Miyagi refuses, as karate is not to be used for fighting, he finally concedes on the condition that Sato will hand over the title deed of the little fishing village back to the people so that they may live in peace forever. It is now Daniel's turn to question the sanity of such a challenge, whilst fighting his own battle with Sato's nephew, who is a nasty piece of work himself. Of course there is a girl tangled up in all of this (another pointless distraction), providing the love interest. Will lifelong friendships win out? Will Miyagi fight his last fight? Will Daniel finally get laid?

Not quite as focused or as well paced as the original, The Karate Kid Part II is far from being the worst sequel ever, but it doesn't quite capture the heart as The Karate Kid did two years earlier. The on-screen relationship between Daniel and Miyagi is strengthened, and the same actors give fine performances. The setting has shifted to Japan (filmed in Hawaii) and the emphasis is more on Miyagi than young Daniel. There are a few patches where the action slows, and much of the dialogue and plot is predictable. For those who have seen and enjoyed the first film, then there is enough in The Karate Kid Part II to maintain interest.

  Video
Contract

This transfer is another pleasant surprise, and is at least as good as the The Karate Kid. The Karate Kid Part II is presented in the same aspect ratio of 1.85:1 and is again anamorphically enhanced. Unlike the original, the Region 1 version contains both pan and scan and widescreen versions but the Region 4 version would be the version of choice.

The image is relatively well defined, though there is some softening. Grain is ever present, and is more noticeable in the many outdoor scenes that make good use of the Hawaiian backdrop, doubling for Okinawa. The colours are generally good, and the ’80s fascination with pastel coloured fashions continues where the first film left off. There are times again when the colouring does appear a little on the pale side, but overall it is good.

Shadow detail is good in most scenes, but deteriorates noticeably in the darker night time scenes. Black levels are generally better than they were in the first film, but some of the darker scenes still appear more grey than black and there is some slight evidence of chroma noise and low-level noise. Aliasing is still in evidence, but again you will have to look hard to see it, and there is the same problem with film artefacts such as dirt and dust, though it really is quite minimal.

There is no layer change in this film and it is presented on a single layer disc.

  Audio
Contract

The audio transfer is extremely similar to The Karate Kid and it is functional and adequate. There is only one English option, and that is a Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo Surround. Vocals are placed in the front, with the surround speakers used exclusively for ambient sounds and the music that in this case is less rocking and more Japanese - and subtler. There is no separation in the rear channels however. The subwoofer is not in action. Dialogue is clear, and at an appropriate level. If anything this film makes a little more use of the surround speakers for the ambient sounds, and scores more audio points than The Karate Kid.

  Extras
Contract

The extras on this disc are Filmogrpahies for the lead actors and director, which are silent text-only screens.

There are two trailers, for The Karate Kid and Roughnecks: Starship Troopers - The Pluto Chronicles. Both are full frame presentations and are of poor quality, suffering from dirt, grain and they are also quite dark.

There are, again according to the case, Weblinks and DVD-ROM games Catch The Fly, Find The Village, and Capture The Bonsai. I could not find these extras on the menu so perhaps they fire up upon insertion of the disc into a DVD-ROM.

The one remotely interesting extra is the Original Featurette, though it is very short lasting only 6:19. It is a brief look at the making of The Karate Kid Part II and is presented in full frame and Dolby Digital 2.0. There are numerous and frequent film artefacts and it is quite dark in appearance, perhaps sourced from an old video copy?

  Overall  
Contract

If you've seen the first film then curiosity alone ought to be enough to inspire you to find out what happened next. The Karate Kid Part II doesn't quite live up to the standards set by The Karate Kid but has enough variety to warrant a viewing. The actors and director saw enough merit in the project to warrant their return and they do a fair job. The video and audio quality are fine, and while the film is aimed more at kids this time around, is still good fun for all.


  • LINK: http://www.dvd.net.au/review.cgi?review_id=1738
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      And I quote...
    "Like most sequels, the formula remains pretty much the same, only this time Daniel-son and Mr. Miyagi are in Japan, and it is Mr. Miyagi who is fighting for his life… "
    - Terry Kemp
      Review Equipment
    • DVD Player:
          Akai
    • TV:
          TEAC CT-F803 80cm Super Flat Screen
    • Receiver:
          Pioneer VSX-D409
    • Speakers:
          Wellings
    • Centre Speaker:
          Wellings
    • Surrounds:
          Wellings
    • Subwoofer:
          Sherwood SP 210W
    • Audio Cables:
          Standard RCA
    • Video Cables:
          standard s-video
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