1987 Nominated Golden Globe Best Original Song - Motion Picture David Foster (music/lyrics),Peter Cetera (music/lyrics),Diane Nini (lyrics) for: the song "Glory of Love"
Young Artist Awards
1987 Won Young Artist Award Exceptional Feature Film - Family Entertainment - Drama
Karate student, Daniel Larusso (Macchio), accompanies his wise teacher, Mr. Miyagi (Morita), to his ancestral home in Okinawa. For Daniel, it's a journey to an exotic new world offering new clues to his mentor's secret past. For Miyagi, it's an opportunity to see his father one last time and to rekindle a romance with his childhood sweetheart (Nobu McCarthy). Miyagi's return also re-ignites a bitter feud with long-time enemy, Sato (Danny Kamekona) - a feud that involves young Daniel in a collision of cultures and combat.
"Glory of Love", the theme from "The Karate Kid Part II", was not the first song originally suggested by singer/songwriter Peter Cetera to be used on the film's soundtrack. Cetera, not interested in a ballad, originally suggested the lively song "They Don't Make 'Em Like They Used To" when the representatives working on the soundtrack asked him for ... a ballad instead. Only then did he present them with the unfinished song that would become "Glory of Love". The rest ... is history. The song became a number one hit in August, 1986 and garnered an Academy Award nomination for Best Music-Song in 1987.
While Peter Cetera was attempting to finish what would become the theme from "The Karate Kid Part II", the eventual title of the song came quite by accident. His former wife, Diane Nini, mistakenly heard the words "Glory of Love" while she was listening to him sing to the music he was writing. The misheard lyric was what Cetera needed to complete the theme. Peter, Diane, along with David Foster are all credited as the writers of "Glory of Love".
Work on this sequel started ten days after the release of the first film.
The opening scenes (Daniel in the shower, and the confrontation in the parking lot with Kreese) are scenes that were filmed for, and edited out of the end of The Karate Kid. The new scenes begin when the title card "Six months later" appears.
During the times when characters are speaking in Japanese, in the Spanish translation version of the movie it is translated into gibberish. They simply try to sound Japanese, but in reality are just making noise.
Incorrectly regarded as goofs - While in Okinawa and Japan it is normal for the driver's side to be on the right side of the car for left lane travel, many right hand cars were transported to the island by members of the US military for personal use and subsequently left there. This is why Soto's personal car is right hand drive.
A huge part of the reason why "The Karate Kid, Part II" works is that it's not just a rehash and that not only do Ralph Macchio and Pat Morita return but so does director John G. Avildsen and screenwriter Robert Mark Kamen. What they have done is take all those pivotal elements of the original such as the relationship between Daniel and Mr. Miyagi, the lessons he teaches him as well as the subtle life message that the original delivered and built on them whilst also delivering a continuation of the storyline which allows for further character developments. It all works well and means that "The Karate Kid, Part II" still has the same appeal as the original but gives us enough differences and new elements to stop it feeling too repetitive. Reviewed by: The Movie Scene.
An air of aimless desperation hangs over ''Part II,'' which starts where the original movie left off, but seems to have forgotten what it was talking about . Reviewed by: Vincent Canby of The New York Times.
“The Karate Kid, Part II' is most certainly Morita's story, and his performance is the film's highlight. It is measured, tender and completely winning. Morita seems a certain bet for Academy consideration as the wise and comical martial arts sage. Reviewed by: The Hollywood Reporter.
Parents need to know that martial-arts violence and revenge contend with worthy themes of mercy, forgiveness and Japanese culture. Despite lip service to non-violence, the action shows fighting as the ultimate solution to problems, so kids will see lots of threatening behavior, severe karate beatings, and retribution. Reviewed by: Common Sense Media.
