Daniel (Ralph Macchio) arrives at his new school in California and soon finds himself bullied by a bunch of karate-trained creeps. Nevermind, help is on hand in the form of the school janitor (Pat Morita), a wise old martial arts instructor who trains Daniel to become a karate expert. This is lucky, because when the chief bully discovers that Daniel has taken up with his girlfriend, he's not going to be very happy about it.

Critic Reviews For The Karate Kid

• “This film's art consists entirely of hiding the cynicism of its calculations under an agreeably modest and disarming manner.” – Richard Schickel , TIME Magazine
• “Morita is simply terrific, bringing the appropriate authority and wisdom to the part” –

Variety Staff , Variety

• “An exciting, sweet-tempered, heart-warming story with one of the most interesting friendships in a long time.” – Roger Ebert , Chicago Sun-Times