The Karate Kid

The Karate Kid (1984)

15 questions since 11 Dec '18, 00:00

(13 votes)

Question: I read that there was supposedly a deleted scene which happens during or after Daniel's fight against Dutch. Namely, after Daniel scores a point, Dutch gets so angry that he tackles him, causing him to get disqualified in the process. Is this true that this scene existed?

Answer: Yes.

And why was this scene deleted? It would explain how Daniel was able to defeat Dutch by scoring only one point.

Question: When Daniel is organising a second date with Ali, Ali trips over the ball heading back to the cheerleader, who says "Way to go, Buttertoes?" What does 'Butter toes' mean?

Answer: "Butterfingers" is a common jab for someone being clumsy and dropping something. "Buttertoes" is a play on this, because she was clumsy with her feet.

Do you have any idea who actually says it? Can't work out whose voice it is.

Either Johnny or Tommy. It's hard to make out, but the other Cobra Kai didn't really interact with Ali, so it would be one of those two.

Answer: Rolling a joint.

LorgSkyegon

Question: Kreese told Bobby to put Daniel out of commission for their semi final match but why didn't he have Johnny put his semi final opponent out of commission?

Answer: Because Kreese has a personal vendetta with Daniel and Mr. Miyagi. He likely wouldn't stoop to that level for a random competitor, but he will to keep Daniel from winning.

Oh, he would definitely stoop against any competitor. He simply had confidence in Johnny's ability to win. However, he did have a personal vendetta and wanted to humiliate Miyagi. Remember that Kreese was a Vietnam veteran, so he had personal animosity towards all Asians. Daniel was barely on his radar, but Kreese despised Miyagi.

Question: How does Daniel go from barely knowing any karate at all to being able to defeat blackbelts and win a tournament in just a few months?

Answer: It's unlikely he could do that in real life, but the movie employs a suspension of disbelief and compresses time in order to tell the story.

raywest

Answer: The win seems implausible, but I think the special training / unique techniques learned from Miyagi were meant to get him a competitive edge or at least quickly bring Daniel to a level of skill that would otherwise have taken years to attain/master. At first, Daniel wasn't even aware the chores Miyagi gave him were designed to give him quick (automatic) reflexes that would enable him to block blows. The final "crane" kick was created for dramatic purposes, but gave an image of an earned victory.

KeyZOid

Question: How could Daniel become skilled enough to beat black belts in a karate tournament after just two months of training?

Answer: The Karate Kid series as a whole, which includes the TV show Cobra Kai, implies that Miyagi's teachings are highly effective. Miyagi's unorthodox teaching methods can get a novice up to a high level in a short period of time.

BaconIsMyBFF

Answer: His opponents in the Valley tournament are not all black belts either. Johnny for example is not a black belt.

Question: Tommy mentions something about ace degenerate - what was he talking about?

Answer: Tommy was saying Johnny was the number one, or best in the group, degenerate. Meaning if there was something bad or wrong to do or get into, Johnny would have been the first to do it or lead the way. Tommy offered Johnny a beer and Johnny refused. At this point, they're not even seniors in high school, so they're engaging in illegal underaged drinking (degenerate behavior). Tommy says it in an affectionate/positive way though, like he his proud to be degenerate.

Bishop73

Answer: He's asking for them to make peace and stop arguing.

Answer: One of them was "I thought they broke up" at the beginning of the film on the beach. Tommy replied "she did, he didn't." I don't recall the other line.

Answer: It didn't look like him. It appears to be a random student and not part of Johnny's group of friends seen throughout the film.

Well in that case, I heard Jimmy has two lines throughout the film and I figured they were both of the "yes sensei's." What are Jimmy's two lines then?

Question: Why are Ali's friends with Johnny, Dutch, and Tommy at Golf and stuff? Surely they'd stay away from them out of respect for Ali?

THE GAMER NEXT DOOR

Answer: Ali and Daniel are really the only ones that seem to have a problem with Johnny and his friends. Other than that, Johnny is well liked and popular. Even Ali's parents are fond of Johnny. Also, to be fair Johnny does seem to be genuine when he invites Ali to come along with the group and even invites Daniel along as well, though he does make a rude comment about Daniel while doing so. The Cobras have stopped harassing Daniel and only Daniel and Ali know the real reason why. Johnny and his group are still friendly with Ali's friends so they see no reason not to hang out with him. Ali's friends also unfairly dislike Daniel from the beginning because he lives in Reseda, so they are not the best judges of character to begin with.

BaconIsMyBFF

Answer: They are in the same friend group and Johnny and Ali's break up doesn't really affect any of them. In the Cobra Kai series, Johnny said that they got into a fight before his senior year and figured things would blow over. So it sounds like them fighting was a regular thing and their friends were probably used to it.

Question: What was the liquid Mr. Miyagi soaked the cloth in and told Daniel: "Smell bad, heal good?"

Answer: Since it's not stated within the movie, it's presumed to be an herb/plant with a foul smell (it's been steeped/brewed so Myagi wrings out the cloth), which has potent healing properties.

Super Grover

Question: At the dance, who is the actor in the yellow shirt that stands near Ali after Johnny and the others trip over themselves while chasing Daniel? He looks so familiar.

Answer: I believe that was the "Chicken Boy" who threw the eggs earlier in the scene. He now took his head covering off. He was played by Todd Lookinland - brother of Mike Lookinland (Bobby Brady of "The Brady Bunch). They somewhat resemble each other.

Question: Did Daniel really mean it when he said he hated his bike, or was it just out of anger?

Answer: It was just out of anger. He's frustrated that he has to ride a bicycle around while his bullies ride around on expensive dirt bikes.

BaconIsMyBFF

Question: Why wasn't Johnny joining in when Dutch was making fun of Daniel? He hates Daniel more than the rest put together. He also wasn't even laughing.

THE GAMER NEXT DOOR

Answer: This scene was intended to show that Dutch was actually the worst of all of them-cold, calculating, and cruel. Johnny was a spoiled rich kid punk, but not a bad person (as seen in Cobra Kai). He doesn't want to sweep the leg, thinks Kreese is crazy for ordering Bobby to put him out of commission, and even congratulates Daniel at the end. Dutch was legitimately a dangerous, possibly psychopathic, kid. He relishes in Daniel's pain and even urges Johnny on in the alley fight. Johnny was pissed, rightfully so, but it was Dutch who was the 'devil on his shoulder.' Also note in Part II when Johnny is being choked out by Kreese - Dutch is the only one who turns his back and ignores it. He doesn't help his 'friend' like the others.

Answer: He was being a good soldier standing at attention while his D.I. was doing all the talking.

Answer: Ali and her family are very well off and are from a nicer part of town. Reseda is a lower income area. It's a typical "wrong side of the tracks" situation. Ali's parents would be happier if their daughter dated someone more well off. The theme of "never judge a book by the cover" permeates throughout the film and this is one of several examples. Daniel is a kind, caring, honorable young man and where he lives has nothing at all to do with his character. Johnny, who Ali's parents are more approving of because of his social status, is controlling, manipulative, petulant, and violent.

BaconIsMyBFF

Answer: Ali's family is well off living in an affluent neighborhood, while Reseda is a lower income level section of town. Her parents are judging Daniel based on where he lives, and don't want their daughter going out with a person they feel is socially "under them."

jimba

Continuity mistake: In the final fight between Daniel and Johnny, there is a time when Johnny's head band falls off (after Johnny scores his second point). Right after it falls off, if you look quickly you can see it back on, then it goes back off. (02:00:50)

Upvote valid corrections to help move entries into the corrections section.

Suggested correction: That right unless there were a few bits of the scene cut where the referee gave it back to him.

More mistakes in The Karate Kid

Daniel: You're the best friend I've ever had.
Miyagi: You... Pretty okay, too.

More quotes from The Karate Kid

Trivia: Ralph Macchio has almost no sense of smell at all. Just for fun, he makes it a point to smell something at least once during every movie he's in. In this movie, he smells a french fry at the restaurant, and he smells his underarm before approaching Alli.

Matty Blast

More trivia for The Karate Kid

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