Mr. Miyagi, he ain’t.
The self-satisfied sensei in this darkly funny film is a lot more of a weasel than the dude who taught Daniel-san, and a lot more likely to beat up his student.
Jesse Eisenberg first shows up at the dojo after getting roughed up by a roving motorcycle gang, then quickly becomes hooked on the mix of face-punching and tough-love self-help being peddled.
Before long, he’s in deep, his pet Dachshund whacked (and replaced by a German Shepherd).
How low is the student willing to go to become the master?
That is the question of the day.