The Karate Kid

Movie · 1984

This beloved underdog story follows teenager Daniel LaRusso, who finds an unlikely mentor in the wise Mr. Miyagi and trains in karate to stand up to a gang of bullies. The heart and life lessons are wonderful, but the bullying is persistent and physical, and there are brief substance references that put this one better suited to older kids.

A great shared watch for kids around 10 and up, especially those who enjoy sports, mentor stories, and classic 80s adventure.

Scary imageryPeril & tensionViolenceLoss & griefBig emotionsLanguageBehavior modeledLoud or startling soundsRomance & innuendoDrinking, drugs & smokingOld-school gender roles

If you’d rather skip

Violencethe Halloween party sequence, roughly mid-filmModerate

A group of costumed Cobra Kai teens chase Daniel in the dark and beat him to the ground; he is left bruised and shaken in what is the film's most intense act of bullying.

Peril & tensionthe opening beach scenesMild

Daniel's first confrontation with Johnny and the Cobra Kai group establishes the bullying dynamic early; he is shoved and humiliated in front of a crowd.

Violenceearly in the film, apartment complex scenesModerate

Daniel is outnumbered and beaten badly enough to be rendered unconscious; visible bruising and a cut are shown afterward.

6 more moments are in the full report. See all of them, checked against your own family’s settings, in Little Longer.