Kung Fu Panda (2008)

<<

Gearing Up

>>

I've always had a soft spot for this movie. It's the first in its series, so it has that now classic feel, it's both good for a laugh and good to inspire, the voice cast is solid, and it's a lot of fun as it balances the silliness of it all with some real-world wisdom, albeit pretty basic wisdom. But that's just it - the basic wisdom is great for the kids watching, and acts as a friendly reminder to those who are older who may be stuck with things like stress. Perhaps it sounds odd and a bit overthought, but I think there's something to it.

The film has a big, obvious, even derivative takeaway at the end, but there are also little nods in here to things like having patience, believing in yourself when no one else does and even the thought of needing to work hard to receive what your want out of life - in this case being a Kung Fu master. I've read some criticisms on the reality of what that would consist of vs. the movie, but to them, I say, that's not the point. The big takeaway is that its within your power to be what you want to be, regardless of the process, how long it takes or how strenuous it would be in reality. Personally, I think it does a great job of being inspirational.

Taking place in an alternate world of anthropomorphic animals, in China, a daydreamer of a panda named Po (Jack Black) works with his Dad (who is, in fact, a goose), Mr. Ping (James Hong) at a noodle restaurant, and fantasizes about being a Kung Fu master, fighting alongside the "Furious Five"; Tigress (Angelina Jolie), Crane (David Cross), Mantis (Seth Rogen), Monkey (Jackie Chan) and Viper (Lucy Liu). The Five are trained by their sensei, a red panda named Shifu (Dustin Hoffman) who has trained each of them up to potentially become the fabled "Dragon Warrior." And though famous in the community, Po looks up to them more than just about anyone.

One day, Shifu's old sensei, a tortoise named Oogway (Randall Duk Kim) predicts the escape of Tai Lung (Ian McShane), a snow leopard who was once a pupil of Shifu, since imprisoned and guarded by a rhino named Commander Vachir (Michael Clarke Duncan). He plots to attack the village in order to steal the Dragon Scroll, which is given to the Dragon Warrior, and is said to have great power. However, he was denied it when Oogway saw something evil in him. Anyway,. long story short, of course, Tai Lung escapes because the movie needs a bad guy.

At the ceremony that will dub one of the Five the "Dragon Warrior," Po tries to get in once the doors are closed for the proceedings only to, through a bit of jack-assery accidentally find himself to get "chosen" to be the Dragon Warrior, much to the Five's dismay, especially Tigress, who was really eye-balling that title. Po stays to be trained in the martial arts, not giving up because "there are no accidents" according to Oogway, and in turn, Shifu must learn patience when it comes to Po's training while the Five must learn tolerence and, to some degree, not to be cocky. So there's quite a bit crammed in here.

Thankfully, the film doesn't feel like its bogged down in after-school-special messages, as they are pretty subtle, yet still clear. I might consider it one of the best animated films out there to show to kids of all ages, as it covers so much ground while remaining perfectly humorous and even kind of relatable, as far as Po's character goes. He is a clumsy, silly character whose humour comes from his weight quite a bit. But the idea that he's an unlikely hero is a part of it as well, and even though "zero-to-hero" is a bit of a trope, I still usually find inspiration in such stories if they're written well, and this definitely works.

Apart from some good humor and a series of good moral messages, a lot of the film's quality also comes from the beauty of the animation, which, aside from making lovable characters, makes China look pretty picturesque and beautiful. In so many ways, this is just a solid, quality watch if only to escape for a bit into something more innocent and fun, but at the same time, kinda deep in its own way at points. Perhaps I look into it a bit much, but I really do consider this to be a one of the big modern classics when it comes to animated films.

4/5

---