10 Deceptively Innocent Movies With Incredibly Dark Moments

1984's wildly successful martial arts drama The Karate Kid served as a springboard for multiple sequels and even a Netflix series, featuring the now-adult versions of the original characters. However, for what is purportedly a feel-good coming-of-age tale, John G. Avildsen's original production happens to feature a jaw-dropping amount of bleak material.

In the first instance, chief antagonist Sensei Kreese is clearly dealing with a significant amount of PTSD from his service in the US Special Forces during the Vietnam War. This spillover of unexpressed psychological trauma is directed towards his students, teaching them a form of karate that emphasises violence and aggression rather than the peaceful tenets upon which the martial art was originally built.

However, matters get even darker from there when Mr Miyagi's desolating backstory is duly revealed after he eventually opens up to Ralph Macchio's Daniel LaRusso. An Okinawan immigrant and a 442nd Infantry Regiment veteran of WWII, the Medal of Honor recipient heartbreakingly confides in his new pupil that he lost his wife and unborn child in an internment camp during his military service.

While The Karate Kid is primarily associated with the notion of conquering bullies and "no can defence" crane kicks, it's hard to shake some of the darker elements associated with this classic picture.