By Craig Carilli

It’s rare for me to read through a review more than once, but in some cases it’s not only necessary, but also very rewarding.  Betsey Sharkey’s review in the LA Times of Karate Kid keeps getting better with each reading.  Not usually known for her subtle style, Sharkey has put away her blunt instrument of information sharing for the surgeon’s scalpel and rewards the reader patient and brave enough to really get into the review.

It took a 4th read through before I discovered the double meaning of her brilliant opening line: “It has kick”.

Describing both the movie as a whole and the fact that there is kicking in karate. I don’t know how she did it, I’m just glad that she did.  The next line speaks of “hits” and “misses”—again bringing the combative nature of karate and the reviewer’s relentless attack on single meaning phrases. Not easily detected in one quick reading for sure, especially from a typically straight shooter like Sharkey.

The hits just kept coming after that.  Sharkey describes the young star of the film, Jaden Smith, as “the fresh prince of Beijing.”  I assumed she described him this way because of his age and possible royal blood, but after some research and taking my time with the line it was in fact because the actor’s father is Will Smith, formerly the “Fresh Prince of Bel Air.”  Fool me once, shame on you.  Fool me twice and I’m leading the campaign to get you a Pulitzer prize.  She also describes co-star Jackie Chan as “scene-stealing grand master flash.” Why would she do this?
I have no idea and they’ll be discussing it for years to come.  When I read it I felt like Holden Caufield had jumped out of “Catcher In The Rye” and decided to describe an aging action star in a remake of a 1980’s classic.

After the initial subtle opening to the review, Sharkey settles back into her comfort zone with the kind of reviewing that has made her increasingly popular with the 25-40 year-old demographic.  She lets us into the world of this movie revealing just enough behind the curtain to have us clamoring for more.  Along with giving us the name of the karate style, wushu, so parents can find the right classes for their kids after they see the movie, she also successfully used “sassy” to describe an African-American female co-star in a review for the tenth straight time.  A record highly unlikely to be broken in our lifetime.

Her final line was one last mind bender: “Chan is usually there to save the day, with Smith, a worthy student, right beside him.”

Both a student in the film and as an actor, but described in one line. I can only use one word with a single meaning to describe this line—”remarkable”.

Sharkey has written the great American review and reading it is a real kick.