One move featured in Karate Kid: Legends is the perfect nod to Bruce Lee, one of the most popular martial artists of all time. Karate Kid: Legends is the first film in the franchise in 15 years and is exciting for longtime fans since it features both Jackie Chan’s Mr. Han and Ralph Macchio’s Daniel LaRusso. In the film, Mr. Han and Daniel team up to train Li Fong, who is played by Ben Wang. However, Li also trains a student of his own in Karate Kid: Legends.
Before Mr. Han and Daniel arrive in New York and train Li Fong for the tournament featured at the end of Karate Kid: Legends, he trains Victor for his boxing match. During their training sessions, Li proves that he has a lot of knowledge about fighting, and even shows Victor the one-inch punch. This was undoubtedly very exciting for fans of Bruce Lee and martial arts. While reviews for Karate Kid: Legends have been quite underwhelming, it was great to see the film honor Bruce Lee by including the one-inch punch.
Karate Kid: Legends Brings The One-Inch Punch To The Franchise
The One-Inch Punch Is An Effective Martial Arts Move
After moving from Beijing to New York at the beginning of Karate Kid: Legends, Li Fong quickly forms a connection with Mia and her father, Victor. Li learns that Victor has signed up for a boxing match to pay off an overdue loan. After fighting off a few men who come to collect the loan, Li agrees to train Victor. Since Li is related to Mr. Han and has a background in kung fu, he teaches Victor some unique fighting techniques in their training sessions.
One unique movie Li teaches Victor is the one-inch punch, which was popularized by Bruce Lee in the 1960s. Li and Victor first practice the one-inch punch by hitting a jar across the counter at the pizzeria from close range. Victor struggles with this move at first, but can eventually punch the jar all the way across the counter. This move also comes in handy during Victor’s boxing match, and actually gives him a significant amount of momentum in the fight.
Bruce Lee Popularized The One-Inch Punch
The One-Inch Punch Was One Of Lee’s Go-To Moves
Karate Kid: Legends dedicates quite a bit of time to explaining the purpose and effectiveness of the one-inch punch. Since it’s the main move Li teaches to Victor, the one-inch punch is one of the most prominent moves in Karate Kid: Legends, only behind the dragon kick which Li uses to defeat Conor Day at the end of the film. As is seen in the film, the one-inch punch is an extremely effective close-range punch that is meant to generate a lot of force upon impact.
Lee used the one-inch punch in some of his most popular movies, such as Fist of Fury and The Way of the Dragon.
The one-inch punch is present in many styles of Southern Chinese martial arts, but became a very popular move in the 1960s thanks to Bruce Lee. This move was demonstrated by Lee at the Long Beach International Karate Championships in 1964. According to people in attendance at the event, Lee used the one-inch punch to send a 245lb man flying back. This is very impressive since Lee likely weighed somewhere between 135 and 145 pounds. Additionally, Lee used the one-inch punch in some of his most popular movies, such as Fist of Fury and The Way of the Dragon.
The One-Inch Punch Is A Clever Way For Karate Kid To Honor Bruce Lee
Karate Kid: Legends Successfully Celebrates The History Of Martial Arts
Lee is one of the most famous martial arts movie stars of all time, and inspired actors like Jackie Chan. While Lee never appeared in any Karate Kid movies, the success of his films is likely one of the reasons the franchise began in the first place. Therefore, including the one-inch punch is a great way to connect the franchise to Lee’s legacy. Since it is part of one of the most popular martial arts movie franchises, it makes perfect sense for Karate Kid: Legends to honor Bruce Lee, who is undoubtedly a legend in his own right.
