The time has finally come for Karate Kid: Legends. It’s now out in theaters, and there is no way that you want to skip it. However, you may fear that it won’t be suitable for the kids, as standards in the movie ratings have changed over the years.
Karate Kid: Legends is one of those movies that we have waited years for. Ralph Macchio and Jackie Chan team up as they both help to train a new protégé. Ben Wang plays Li Fong, a boy who moves to New York City with his mom and struggles to fit in with his new classmates. As he decides to prove himself great, he enters a karate competition, but he’s a kung fu prodigy.
Mr. Han turns to Daniel LaRusso for help to train Li Fong in karate. It turns out that Mr. Han knew Mr. Miyagi, and he knows all about that form of defensive karate. Can the two work together to help Li blend the two forms of martial arts to win?
Karate Kid: Legends age rating: Explaining the PG-13 rating
If your kids love the Karate Kid movies of the past, you’ll want to take them to the theater to watch the new addition, right? Well, the great news is you can. This is rated PG-13, which means that those 13 and over will be fine to watch it on their own. Those younger than that could find it entertaining, and there aren’t too many fight scenes to make them uncomfortable, but you’ll definitely want to be there with them.
Sex & nudity: There is the topic of a kiss, and that’s as much as you’re getting with sex and nudity in this movie. It is very much like the original Karate Kid movies.
Violence & gore: This is where it earns the PG-13 movie, because there are a fair few martial arts scenes. You should expect that, considering it is part of the Karate Kid franchise. There isn’t any heavy gore, but there are fight scenes that include punching and kicking.
There is a scene where someone pulls a knife out in a fight, but that knife isn’t used to stab anyone. You’ll see the odd bruise from the fights, but there are no graphic injuries on show.
Language: This is mild, and very similar to previous movies rather than like Cobra Kai. The S-word is used now and then and there are a few mentions of “a*s” and “damn,” but other than that, the language is mild.
Alcohol & drugs: There is none of this throughout Karate Kid: Legends.
Overall verdict: Who is Karate Kid: Legends appropriate for?
This is one of those movies I took both of my kids to see at ages 12 and 9. They are both Karate Kid fans, and we all knew what we were getting into based on the franchise. While there are some fight scenes, there is nothing that would make me want to cover the eyes of smaller children.
However, it is important to have conversations with children after this, especially impressionable ones. The martial art scenes are all well-choreographed, and they shouldn’t be repeated at home. Of course, this could be a great way to get children interested in a form of martial arts, but the lessons about using the skills appropriately are important conversations to have.
Karate Kid: Legends is now out in theaters.