Jack Black is the Chosen One in Kung Fu Panda
Written: Jun 06 '08 (Updated Sep 19 '08)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Cute, entertaining movie. Good voice cast.
Cons: Plot could have been stronger. Could have been funnier. There was a snake.
The Bottom Line: Kung Fu Panda was an entertaining animated movie that I enjoyed even though it had a few problems.
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| dragonfire88's Full Review: Kung Fu Panda |
I still really enjoy animated movies, so I tend to see most of the new ones that come out. I don't remember when I first saw a preview for Kung Fu Panda, but I have been wanting to see it for a while.
Po the Panda loved kung fu even though he couldn't actually do it himself. He idolized Tigress, Monkey, Mantis, Viper, and Crane who were trained by Master Shifu in the ways of kung fu. Po somehow was chosen to be the next Dragon Warrior, which upset Master Shifu and his students since he had no kung fu abilities. Master Shifu had to find a way to train Po so he could protect the Valley of Peace from the ferocious snow leopard Tai Lung.
There was a short scene after the credits that was cute though it didn’t amount to much.
The plot of Kung Fu Panda was fairly simple overall even though there were a few different things going on. The movie was focused on Po and his journey to become the Dragon Warrior. He was an unlikely hero, which has been done in other movies, so the plot wasn’t overly original. It was handled a bit differently in this movie by making the unlikely hero a panda. There were a few minor subplots brought up connected to Master Shifu and his students that weren’t really developed. Certain things that happened were predictable, which I expect in animated movies. I thought that the plot was interesting and entertaining overall.
Master Shifu had been involved in kung fu for many years. Tigress had started training with him when she was a young child. There was only one very short scene that showed her when she started her training. That one moment was enough to establish how much she yearned for his approval and affection. The issues in their relationship weren’t addressed any further in the movie, which I thought was a missed opportunity. It wasn’t shown, but I’m guessing that Monkey, Mantis, Viper, and Crane had also been training with Shifu for many years. They were all very good at kung fu and worked together well. None of them were happy that Po was chosen as the Dragon Warrior at first, but they started to slowly come around to accepting him. I would have liked it if there had been more focus on the interactions between the group, including how Po was able to join the mix.
Kung fu was a major part of Kung Fu Panda. I have seen several other martial arts movies with this being the first animated movie to deal with the subject. I don’t know much of anything about the different martial arts, so I have no idea how accurate that aspect of the movie was. I have heard of there being different types of kung fu that are identified with animal names. I think Tigress, Monkey, Mantis, Viper, and Crane all represented one of the different types but I could be wrong about that. There were a few fights throughout the movie and some of the training was shown as well. Po was having difficulty with the training and did get hurt at times. Even with that and the fights, there wasn’t a lot of violence in the movie and it wasn’t graphic. I think the fight scenes are why the movie was rated PG.
I thought that there was a decent amount of humor in Kung Fu Panda, but it could have been funnier. I do think the funnier bits were shown in the trailers unfortunately, but there were still some other funny moments included as well. Sometimes, quite a bit of time passed between jokes, which might disappoint some viewers. I think there were a few attempts at humor that just didn’t work for me. Either that, or the kids in the theater all found something funny that I - and many of the adults - didn’t. There were jokes made about Po being overweight, his lack of physical activity, and his eating habits that some people might find a bit mean spirited. There really wasn’t the gross humor that has been in so many other animated movies, which was nice.
Kung Fu Panda was created with computer animation by Dreamworks. The opening sequence had a different look that was very distinct from the rest of the movie. It did look more like traditional hand drawn animation, but I have no idea if it was actually hand drawn or not. There were graphics featuring the different characters throughout the final credits. The animation was very well done throughout the movie. There were times when individual hairs on the characters were moving with the breeze that looked good. Even though I did think that the animation was done well, I didn’t think it was as good as what Pixar has done. I don’t think the movie was as good as Pixar’s either. I have enjoyed the Dreamworks animated movies too, but most of them just aren’t as good. Pixar’s movie have heart that most other animated movies are missing.
Po was the main character and ended up with the most to do throughout Kung Fu Panda. He loved kung fu and dreamed about being a great fighter even though he was in horrible shape and had trouble just getting up at times. He was conflicted about being chosen the Dragon Warrior since it was his dream come true but he also felt that he couldn’t do it. He was a good, likable character. Jack Black did a really good job with the voice of Po.
Master Shifu was a wise, talented teacher of kung fu. He had been involved in kung fu for years. He had some issues in his past that were still impacting him. He tended to be strict with his students and didn’t seem to have any sense of humor. I thought that Dustin Hoffman’s voice worked well for the character. His students were around in several scenes though most of them didn’t really say much. I think Monkey only said about three or four lines in the entire movie, so it was a waste of Jackie Chan. Mantis, Crane, and Viper didn’t have much to say either. I wasn’t exactly happy that one of the characters was a snake, but she didn’t make me freak since she was animated. Tigress was the only one of the students that had more lines and even she didn’t have that many. She came across as being angry, especially when Po was around. I did think Angelina Jolie did well with the lines she had to work with.
Tai Lung had been one of Master Shifu’s students before he turned to evil. He was very strong and talented in kung fu, so he did pose a huge threat to the entire valley. He did make a good villain for the movie. Even the way he was drawn at times, like when he was shown with glowing eyes, helped to add to the character. Little things like that did help to make him more menacing. Ian McShane’s voice was perfect for the character. There were a few other characters around, like Po’s father, who were in a few scenes without that much to do. Michael Clark Duncan voiced Commander Vachir, a prison guard that turned up in a few short scenes.
Main Voice Talent
Jack Black - Po
Jackie Chan - Monkey
David Cross - Crane
Michael Clark Duncan - Commander Vachir
Dustin Hoffman - Master Shifu
Angelina Jolie - Tigress
Lucy Liu - Viper
Ian McShane - Tai Lung
Seth Rogen - Mantis
Directed by Mark Osborne and John Stevenson
Kung Fun Panda was a cute, entertaining animated movie that I enjoyed. The plot could have been slightly stronger and it could have been funnier. The children in the theater when I saw it were really enjoy the movie and most of the adults seemed to be enjoying it as well. It is a good animated movie that is worth seeing.
I would have given this movie three and a half stars if I had the option. Since I don’t, I rounded up to four.
Animated Movie Reviews
101 Dalmatians ~ Aladdin ~ The Ant Bully ~ Antz ~ The Aristocats ~ Barnyard ~ Beauty and the Beast ~ Bee Movie ~ Best Computer Animated Movies ~ Brother Bear ~ A Bug's Life ~ Cars ~ Chicken Little ~ Doctor Strange ~ The Emperor's New Groove ~ Finding Nemo ~ Flushed Away ~ Happy Feet ~ Hellboy Animated: Blood & Iron ~ Hellboy Animated - Sword of Storms ~ Home on the Range ~ Hoodwinked ~ Horton Hears a Who ~ Ice Age ~ Ice Age: The Meltdown ~ The Incredibles ~ Invincible Iron Man ~ Jetsons: The Movie ~ Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius ~ Lilo & Stitch ~ Looney Tunes: Back in Action ~ Madagascar ~ Meet the Robinsons ~ Monster House ~ Monsters, Inc. ~ The Nightmare Before Christmas ~ Open Season ~ Over the Hedge ~ The Polar Express ~ Ratatouille ~ Robots ~ Shark Tale ~ Shrek ~ Shrek 2 ~ Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas ~ Sleeping Beauty ~ Tim Burton's Corpse Bride ~ TMNT ~ Toy Story ~ Toy Story 2 ~ Treasure Planet ~ Ultimate Avengers ~ Ultimate Avengers 2: Rise of the Panther ~ Valiant ~ Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit ~ Wallace & Gromit - Three Amazing Adventures ~ The Wild ~
Recommended:
Yes
Movie Mood: Family Movie
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