The Karate Kid: Part III 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.5
Overall		2.5

The Karate Kid: Part III 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman December 9, 2021

Sony has released the 1989 sequel film 'The Karate Kid, Part III' to the UHD format. This new disc includes 2160p/HDR video, Dolby Atmos audio, and new extras. The included Blu-ray appears to share the same video and audio as the 2016 Choice Collection issue, the big difference being the inclusion of a top menu screen and the dismissal of the trailer collage. The UHD does not add any extras, either, save for the film's theatrical trailer. Note that at time of writing this set is exclusive to the three film boxed set.

John Kreese is broke and a broken man. He has not had a student in nine months following his humiliation at the All Valley Karate Tournament, and by the numbers his Cobra Kai dojo is done. But there’s a savior in Terry Silver, a former war buddy who Kreese saved numerous times in Vietnam, and this time it’s Silver’s turn to save Kreese. Silver sends Kreese on an exotic R&R vacation to Tahiti while he schemes revenge on Daniel LaRusso and Mr. Miyagi. He hires a nasty karate expert named Mike Barnes to fight Daniel at this year’s All Valley Tournament, but Daniel wants no part of it. He’s more interested in building a life with Miyagi and building the Bonsai store he just bought for his mentor, spending his college tuition funds on Miyagi’s dream. But Barnes and his cronies harrass Daniel into agreeing to defend the title, where Silver plans to see Daniel suffer. But first, he manipulates the boy, breaking down his mind and spirit by posing as his sensei in place of Daniel’s trusted friend, Miyagi.

For a full film review, please click here; note that this link points to the 2016 Blu-ray.

The Karate Kid: Part III 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The included screenshots are sourced from a 1080p Blu-ray disc.

The Karate Kid, Part III makes its UHD debut with a high quality 2160p/Dolby Vision UHD presentation. The picture quality is gorgeous, generally, holding to a natural grain structure that is visually flattering and texturally complimentary. It is even in density, generally, with few exceptions when the field intensifies when the film is pushed fairly hard in lower light or in a steam bath scene at the 16-miunte mark, the latter being the best example of the most aggressive grain in the movie. For the most part, however, the picture quality is exceptional. The fine grain compliments the picture's natural filmic state, which is transmitted here with a very natural sharpness and clarity. The UHD renders the old Choice Collection Blu-ray obsolete, adding enormous gains to textural finesse and overall sharpness. Faces are showcases for intimate detail and clothes are showstoppers for precision visibility of period attire. Viewers will see every location detail, Bonsai leaf, and the like with remarkable clarity. The picture is not as razor sharp and complex as the other two films in the UHD set, but it's often close. It looks very good and is certainly a large step forward from the previous 1080p picture.

The Dolby Vision color grading is of great benefit to the picture, too. This is not a radical reworking but it does draw out the best of bright natural greens, blue skies, clothes, and other accents which are full and faithful and beautifully saturated. Whites are brilliant and black level depth is terrific. Skin tones are healthy and natural. The image suffers from no serious print flaws or encode anomalies. While this cannot quite match the splendor seen on the first two films' UHD presentations, the image looks great and is a far step forward from a comparatively haggard Blu-ray.

The Karate Kid: Part III 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The new Dolby Atmos soundtrack delivers a positive listening experience, albeit one that is not necessarily revamped by the extra surround back and height channel availability. The track downplays opportunities to extend and push sound upward, favoring subtle supports and enjoying the increases to fullness and richness rather than assault the listener with reworked audio engineering cues. The presentation is effective in delivering the film's basics -- score, various action effects (mostly punches and kicks and the like) and dialogue -- with appreciable clarity and a good sense of weight about them all. The track is most comfortable utilizing the front stage portion but the backs do fold in score in a support role and some atmospheric fill as necessary. Dialogue is the primary audio mover here and it is presented clearly and efficiently from the front-center channel. Again, this is not a major audio reworking, but the general adds to overall clarity and the fuller sense of spatial awareness makes it the clear superior to the previous 5.1 lossless mix.

The Karate Kid: Part III 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The Blu-ray, which is for all intents and purposes identical to the 2016 Choice Collection release (with some superficial tweaks) includes no supplemental content. The UHD disc includes a single supplement, the film's Theatrical Trailer (1080p, 1:28). As it ships in the three-film collection, a digital copy code is included and the case ships with its own non-embossed slipcover.

The Karate Kid: Part III 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Karate Kid: Part III lacks original content, but the movie is saved by Thomas Ian Griffith's performance of the manipulative Terry Silver, who dedicates his life to destroying Daniel, just as Daniel destroyed his friend John Kreese's life. Griffith begins the film goofily giddy with excitement overt the prospect of ruining Daniel but shines as he works to manipulate the boy from the inside out. The film sorely misses Daniel's antagonist from the first film, Johnny; Mike Barnes is not a capable replacement. This is a watchable film with a few good components amidst largely recycled narrative content. Sony's UHD looks and sounds terrific. No meaningful extras are included. Highly recommended, as is the entire three-film UHD boxed set.