Kung Fu Panda (2008)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Directors:

Mark Osborne
John Stevenson

Writers:

Jonathan Aibel (screenplay) &
Glenn Berger (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

6 June 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Action | Comedy | Family

Tagline:

Prepare for awesomeness.

Plot:

In the Valley of Peace, Po the Panda finds himself chosen as the Dragon Warrior despite the fact that he is obese and a complete novice at martial arts.

Plot Keywords:

Kung Fu | Hero | Master | Panda | Unlikely Hero

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 11 wins & 20 nominations

US Showtimes:

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Cast

Jack Black	...	Po (voice)
Dustin Hoffman	...	Shifu (voice)
Angelina Jolie	...	Tigress (voice)
Ian McShane	...	Tai Lung (voice)
Jackie Chan	...	Monkey (voice)
Seth Rogen	...	Mantis (voice)
Lucy Liu	...	Viper (voice)
David Cross	...	Crane (voice)
Randall Duk Kim	...	Oogway (voice)
James Hong	...	Mr. Ping (voice)
Dan Fogler	...	Zeng (voice)
Michael Clarke Duncan	...	Commander Vachir (voice)
Wayne Knight	...	Gang Boss (voice)
Kyle Gass	...	KG Shaw (voice)
JR Reed	...	JR Shaw (voice)

Also Known As:

Kung Fu Panda: The IMAX Experience (USA) (IMAX version)

MPAA:

Rated PG for sequences of martial arts action.

Runtime:

92 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Sonics-DDP (IMAX version) | SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

South Korea:All | Australia:PG | UK:PG | Finland:K-7 | Malaysia:U | Singapore:G | Philippines:G (MTRCB) | Ireland:PG | USA:PG (certificate #44302) | Hong Kong:I | Switzerland:0 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:0 (canton of Geneva) | Taiwan:GP (original rating) | Portugal:M/4 | Portugal:M/6 | Germany:6 | Netherlands:6 | Brazil:Livre | Sweden:7 | Argentina:Atp | Peru:PT | Portugal:M/6 (original version) | New Zealand:PG | South Africa:PG | Canada:G

Company:

DreamWorks Animation

Trivia:

The Kung Fu/ Wu-xia convention where attacks on the correct nerve/ Chi points can cause paralysis and other effects is adopted although it is not explained in the film, and the jade figurine topped sticks on the shell worn on the imprisoned Tai Lung are positioned at the traditional Chi energy points of the body. The sticks are intended to keep the villain from accessing the power from those points, which is why he was first concerned about removing them before attempting to break his chains.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Po wakes up in the beginning of the movie a throwing star falls down and lands on the floor. Later when he tries to throw it back up on the wall you see the original throwing star is still in the wall.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Po: Legend tells of a legendary warrior whose kung fu skills were the stuff of legend.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 81st Annual Academy Awards (2009) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Kung Fu Fighting

Dreamworks hits a HOME RUN with this one!

From the very beginning, Kung Fu Panda had me practically falling out of my seat --- laughing. It was the perfect blend of comedy, heart, and action, all necessary elements in a successful and great animation/CGI film, in the tradition of The Incredibles and (less action, but containing the heart and laughter) Ratatouille, Finding Nemo and Monsters, Inc.

I took my wife and nephew and niece to see it on a Friday night and they enjoyed it, too! We were totally laughing, smiling, and guffawing at Po, the main protagonist (voiced by Jack Black) and his misadventures at becoming a Kung Fu expert. This was certainly a flawed character, one that a lot of people can relate to because he dreams, he's funny, and he can laugh at himself. Also, the story was pretty clear and easy to follow because the storytelling was well crafted, and the animation was paired well with characters brought vividly to life by some of the most famous names in Hollywood.

Jack Black and Dustin Hoffman are downright excellent as the main characters, and Ian McShane as the bad dude gave it the right fearful presence. Other big name stars don't shine as much, but that's because their roles are rather limited in the film. But that's still okay because the animators should be given equal credit (if not more) for delivering the funny, action and heart elements of this movie in an effective, amazing and (I've got to use this) AWESOME manner. Visually, this movie is stunning (notice all those scenic shots of the Chinese mountains, bodies of water, and the bridge scene; not to mention the action animation version of "The Matrix" with slow-mo)... simply a delight to watch.

It's clear that Dreamworks has gotten back in the animation game with Kung Fu Panda, after slight ho-hums in Shrek 3 and Bee Movie (call me crazy, but I liked Over The Hedge more than those two). Hopefully, it should earn well over $500M worldwide because it is so good.

This movie rightfully belongs in the top animation movies of all time (okay, let's not include the classic fairy tales of old; let's begin with the 90's onwards), alongside my faves "The Incredibles" "Finding Nemo" and "Beauty & The Beast." Has the makings of being a classic.

My wife and I enjoyed it so much that we saw it again the night after. And maybe another time... haha!

Enjoy!