“The Karate Kid” (PG, 132 minutes): The new “Karate Kid” brings fresh life and perspective to the classic tale of perseverance and cross-generational friendship. As Dre Parker, who with his mother, Sherry (Taraji P. Henson), has just moved to Beijing, Jaden Smith brings a soulful, searching sense of vulnerability to a kid who comes under attack from bullies on his first day in town. After a particularly brutal beat-down, Dre is defended by his apartment house caretaker, a quiet introvert named Mr. Han (Jackie Chan). When Han — who turns out to be a kung fu master — goes up against the kids who have been terrorizing Dre, he does so largely with defensive moves that tie the belligerents into knots. While the filmmakers invite viewers to wince and cheer during the film’s fight scenes, they make sure to soften the blows with wise tutorials in self-discipline, respect and balance. Contains bullying, martial-arts action violence and some mild profanity. DVD extras: Making-of and learn Chinese language featurettes; and “Never Say Never” music video, with Smith and Justin Bieber.