Movie Review: Kung Fu Panda

Stars: 5 out of 5
Pros: Lots of fun with plenty of laughs

Cons: Familiar story

The Bottom Line:

Surprisingly fun

This film will make you laugh, cheer

Pure entertainment

"There is No Charge for Awesomeness.  Or Attractiveness."

I am not a Jack Black fan. Outside of the Shrek franchise, I'm also not a fan of Dreamworks Animation. So it was with some reluctance that I got talked into seeing Kung Fu Panda. But I am certainly glad I did.

Our story centers around Po the Panda (voiced by Jack Black). He is a Kung Fu legend. Evildoers fear him and the people adore him. The Fearsome Five long to fight with him. And everything. . .hold on, maybe that isn't the way it really is.

In reality, Po works in his father's noodle restaurant waiting tables, He's way overweight and out of shape. But he dreams about Kung Fu and idolizes the Fearsome Five, Monkey (Jackie Chan), Crane (David Cross), Tigress (Angelina Jolie) Viper (Lucy Liu), and Mantis (Seth Rogen). That's why, when it is announced that the legendary Dragon Warrior will soon be chosen, Po leaves everything behind and joins the rest of the village high up the mountain.

Through a series of events, Po winds up being named the Dragon Warrior, much to the dismay of the Fearsome Five and Master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman) who must train the rookie. Po doesn't think he can do it, but he doesn't want to quit. Shifu and the Five want to make him quit. But they'd better figure things out soon because an old foe is about to return to the village intent on destroying it. Can Po save the day?

So let's get the obvious and the only negative out of the way right now, shall we? We've seen this plot before. Many, many times before. So, the challenge of this particular movie is to make the familiar ride enjoyable. And it succeeds in spades.

The movie is pretty funny, with lots of one liners as well as slap stick comedy. This isn't a side splitting comedy, but I laughed plenty of times. And there were several moments when the almost packed theater I was in erupted in laughter together at a completely unexpected gag. There are a few more serious and tender moments as well, and the movie balances them without making it feel forced.

While we may know where the plot is going, it doesn't waste time getting there. It is an hour and a half long, but the story moves from one plot point to another fairly quickly. I was captivated the entire time, not wanting to miss a joke. And the ending may not have made me want to stand up and cheer, but it certainly made me smile.

The first couple minutes of the film are traditional hand drawn animation, but it quickly switches to computer drawn animation. While the opening was slightly stylized, it looked great. Of course, I still love traditional animation and can't wait for the return of that art form. But I must say computer animation is getting better every year. This was a feast for the eyes with lots of beautiful settings and detail. The fur on the animals is amazing.

And the many fight scenes look great. They were all easy to follow, something that can't always be said for live action movies these days. We're talking Kung Fu movie quality fights here. The scope and choreography are wonderful. Okay, so they are slightly over the top at times. But they fit into the animated world, so I don't care.

Even when I know a voice cast is made up of famous people, I seem to have a hard time distinguishing all of them. That was the case here. In fact, if I hadn't known Jack Black was Po, I might not have recognized him, either. In my mind, that's the sign of a good voice performance. I'm not distracted listening to a particular actor or actress. In stead, I completely buy the character and get lost in the story.

The movie is rated PG, most likely for violence. Being a Kung Fu movie, that shouldn't be a big surprise. While most of the fight scenes are comical, a couple of them, especially the climax, could be scary for young kids. If that's a concern, you might want to screen it first. But I'd bet that most kids would have no problem with the animated violence shown here.

Okay, so Kung Fu Panda doesn't really break any new ground. It's still incredibly fun, and that's all that matters. I'm glad I gave the movie a chance.