'Kung Fu Panda' Review- Everybody Was Kung Fu Fighting
The first in a Kung Fu trilogy.
DreamWorks Animation brought us the animated feature film Kung Fu Panda in 2008. It was directed by John Stevenson and Mark Osborne while Paramount distributed it.
In the Valley of Peace, the panda Po (Jack Black) works in his goose father Mr. Ping (James Hong)’s noodle shop where they serve the bestselling “Secret Ingredient Soup.” Po dreams of becoming a Kung Fu Master and allying with the infamous Furious Five. Meanwhile, Master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman) is warned by Grand Master Oogway (Randall Duk Kim) that their former apprentice Tai Lung (Ian McShane) will return to seek revenge. As such Shifu’s Furious Five members Tigress (Angelina Jolie), Mantis (Seth Rogan), Viper (Lucy Liu), Monkey (Jackie Chan), and Crane (David Cross) are candidates to stop him. After a mishap, Po is seemingly chosen by accident and now Shifu must train him as the “Dragon Warrior” to stop Tai Lung from destroying the Valley of Peace.
I remember seeing this feature in the cinemas. It was so cool to see Kung Fu legends come to life in the most sleek way possible. Watching it again, it only gets better.
DreamWorks does an amazing job with the animation. I loved everything about how it was designed. The character renderings, the backgrounds, and the action were done with such sleekness that it blew my mind. I hope they know how good of a job they did.
As for the story, I loved it. You could tell that the writers have a love for Kung Fu movies. Because while there is a lot of comedy, they do not make fun of the genre itself. They clearly had an affinity for Kung Fu, which showed in the final production. This is what made the plot so enjoyable. You cheer for Po as he trains to take on Tai Lung in an epic battle and it has a conclusion that you do not expect.
Of course, I cannot forget the cast. Everyone did a fantastic job. Jack Black was perfectly cast as Po and he delivered on every single level. Likewise, Hoffman is brilliant as Shifu. He is the breakout role here as he did such an incredible job. Of course, James Hong is brilliantly cast as Po’s unlikely father.
It is a shame that this movie lost out to Disney-Pixar’s WALL-E. While that film is good, this one is far superior as far as the enjoyment factor.
Bottom line, Kung Fu Panda is brilliant. It was enough comedy to keep the kids entertained and enough action for the adults. Definitely give it a try.
PARENTAL CONCERNS: Rude humor, Fantasy violence
FAVORITE QUOTE: There is no secret ingredient.
Check out the trailer below:
What do you think? Let me know in the comments below. Tell me if there is a comic book, anime, movie, or novel you would like me to review.