SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

Ceticultsot Beautiful, moving film.

BallWubba Wow! What a bizarre film! Unfortunately the few funny moments there were were quite overshadowed by it's completely weird and random vibe throughout.

Chirphymium It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

stevecat70 Awful acting, rip-off story of Karate Kid, poor direction. Your eyes and ears will burn from the crappiness of this "film" Give it a HUGE skip.

jnlegal This was painful to watch. I've always loved Don the Dragon Wilson. There's no doubt that he's a legend. But having him in this movie was more of a gimmick rather than an addition to the plot. Bad acting and confusing plot lines abound in The Martial Arts Kid. The main character steals another person's girlfriend, then beats up a guy for breaking a locket and we're supposed to be sympathetic towards him? If anything, it's our so-called hero who is the "bad guy". I was really shocked by all the critics who have praised this movie. It is without a doubt one of the worst movie I've ever seen.

Anita Clay Honoring the Past, Embracing the Future Is The Martial Arts Kid a knockdown, drag-out fight flick in which Don "The Dragon" Wilson and Cynthia Rothrock lay waste to gang bangers and drug dealers? Nope. It's more accurate to describe it as a family film in which an ordinary teen discovers the meaning of the martial arts.However, because I'm a few years past being a teenager, it wasn't the movie's portrayal of the trials and tribulations of teen life in the 21st century that appealed to me most. What I really enjoyed was the way the movie paid homage to the men and women who helped spread the martial arts in America. Both in front of and behind the camera, the stars were out in force.Wilson and Rothrock may have retired from competition decades ago, but they still can throw down — and they get a few chances to do exactly that. Among other encounters, Wilson takes on martial artist T.J. Storm, and Rothrock dispatches some baddies on the beach. The man who choreographed those close encounters is veteran martial artist, actor and stuntman James Lew, perhaps best known for his work in Big Trouble in Little China.Another martial arts veteran contributed her expertise to the making of the movie: Cheryl Wheeler served as co-producer. You probably recognize her name. She's a former Black Belt columnist and WKA kickboxing champ who's done stunt work in scores of movies — including fight-doubling for Rene Russo in Lethal Weapon 4, which featured one of my favorite male-on-female fights.As I mentioned, Wilson and Rothrock are center stage in The Martial Arts Kid, where they're surrogate parents for troubled teen Robbie (Jansen Panettiere). Yes, critics fired a few shots at Wilson and Rothrock's performances in the early years of their acting careers, but their skills have improved substantially. In fact, their scenes with Robbie are among the most engaging parts of the movie.I also loved the film's nods to history. I'm talking about things like Rothrock's character hailing from Scranton, Pennsylvania, the city where the star actually grew up. And things like the dojo her character co-owns hosting seminars with real martial arts luminaries like Pete "Sugarfoot" Cunningham, Gerry Blanck, Christine Bannon-Rodrigues, Olando Rivera and Jeff Smith. And details like using old competition photos of Rothrock to adorn the walls of said dojo.The positive messages that run through The Martial Arts Kid make it perfect for youngsters who are in the martial arts, as well as those who should be. But there are plenty of gems that make it fun to watch even if you're a generation removed from that target audience.— Robert W. Young Editor-in-Chief, Black Belt magazine

AlbertV79 I've been a fan of Don "The Dragon" Wilson and Cynthia Rothrock for a long time and when I heard about this film, I was quite excited. They were perfectly cast as Glen and Cindy, a couple who take in troubled nephew Robbie and soon become his mentors in the martial arts when he is bullied.The film does convey its anti-bullying message, but in a way, the film also changes the way people may perceive martial arts as a whole and that is what also stands out between Wilson's Glen and T.J. Storm's Coach Kaine. Their differences of opinions as to how martial arts should be conveyed is truly personified not only by them but by Robbie and Kaine's student Bo, who is the one who bullies Robbie. Jansen Panettiere and Matthew Ziff really break out in the film as they did great jobs in their roles of Robbie and Bo respectively. Plus if you are a martial arts fan, you will see most of the cast is comprised of martial artists with some legends of the field and world champions playing themselves as mentors. This truly is marketed towards the family and speaking not only as a film fan, but as a parent as well, this is one that is suitable for families and is a break away from your generalization of martial arts films. Definitely worth checking out!