Kung Fu Panda 2 Co-Op Movie Review

Does Dreamworks' latest animated movie hold its main character's large weight, or is it another Shrek: The Third? Read our review to find out!

PLOT SUMMARY

Kung Fu Panda 2 starts an unknown time after the events of the first film. The film takes place in a universe populated by cute animals in a witty re-imagining of China.  Po the panda (a fat one at that) is living comfortably with the Furious Five (the fve best kung fu masters in all the land) and their sensei, a red panda named Shifu.  As the newly instated  Dragon Warrior, the supreme protector of China, Po is expected to thwart any evil that may rise in their world. However, Shen-a villainous peacock-is wreaking havoc in the land. Shen has discovered a weapon that is impervious to Kung Fu. The Furious Five catch wind of this and begin their adventure to stop Shen from ruling all of China!

INITIAL THOUGHTS?

Jack Black sure is a cute panda.

JAKE'S THOUGHTS: Kung Fu Panda 2 is a rare good sequel. It isn't as good overall as its predecessor, though it does some things better. I wasn't too excited to see Panda 2, mainly because I didn't see the point in making a sequel; the first film was a breath of fresh air in a Summer full of sequels and super hero romps. A little of Jack Black playing a big fat panda in 2008 was cool, but would it work in 2011? Yes. Though some of the jokes don't hit their mark, and Shen (the villain) isn't quite as good as Tai Long from no. 1, this is still a solid sequel made by its nice character development and awesome kung fu.

DAN'S THOUGHTS: I have always found it odd how people seem to be unable to think of Dreamworks without comparing it to its celebrated animating counterpart Pixar. While I will openly confess my preference for Pixar, I nonetheless harbor a very deep admiration for Dreamworks, a company that—in spite of its competitor’s impossibly stellar record—still manages to create its own flourishing identity and style. Such is the case with Kung Fu Panda 2—a movie I attended with mild enthusiasm and left sporting an imperishable smile.

IS THE STORY ANY GOOD?

JAKE'S THOUGHTS: The story in Kung Fu Panda 2 isn't great but it does get the job done. All of your favorite characters are back; Monkey, Mantis, Viper, Tigris (who really comes into her own in this movie), Crane, master Shifu (my personal favorite) and, of course, Po the panda aka The Dragon Warrior. The movie takes place an unknown amount of time after the first film, all we really know is that enough time has passed for the Po action figures to come out. 

Something that will surprise audiences, and not mentioned in the above plot summary, is that a number of characters are having inward conflicts. Po is reliving memories tucked away deep in his mind of his birth parents (these vary from Po fighting a radish that has replaced him as his parents son, to watching his mother valiantly rescue a baby version of himself from genocide. So yeah, those are two opposite ends of the spectrum.). Mr. Ping-Po's adoptive father(who's also a goose)-is struggling with the fact that his son has grown up and moved on as the Dragon Warrior. And the villainous peacock, Shen, has his own struggles and emotions. All of this is done well and helps the flow of the story.


This story isn't as good as its predecessor but it opens up some deeper character development that feels needed in the sequel. 
SCORE: 3/5 GOLD COINS

He may be adorable, but he can snap your neck.

DAN'S THOUGHTS: Pitted against your standard, run-of-the-mill children’s animated sequel, Kung Fu Panda’s story is surprisingly engaging. While unoriginal and occasionally cliché, it does well at containing itself, connecting seemingly whimsical plot pieces together to make nearly everything relevant. One excellent example of this was the story’s principle moral message: “inner peace.” Initially coming off as your standard Chinese moral lesson that you’d just as soon find in your copy of Grimm’s fairy tales or Sunday School, it actually develops to be relevant to the plot and practical on a real-life basis (at least for your humble writer).

Shen, the primary peacock antagonist of the film who holds a dark secret about Po’s past (and never looses a peacock scream, for some reason), acts as the foil to peace, constantly disrupting Po’s mood and comically providing the quintessential depiction of an unbalanced and frantic mind. He’s entertaining to watch, ruthless, crazy, and even dignified—in his own odd way. In essence, he manifested Po’s insecurity and anguish in the same manner that Tai Long did in representing the dark aspects of Po’s desires for recognition and power. Another excellent addition to the Kung Fu panda’s rogues gallery.

Po himself goes through an interesting transition through the story, learning about his past through several cleverly devised hand-drawn flashback sequences, and displays a conflicted, darker personality that was more absent in the film before. Not to say that he’s turned into standard annoying, brooding action hero (rather the opposite, in fact), but he’s done a good bit of growing up between films. Speaking of growing, while most of the Furious Five (and Master Shifu, for that matter) were muchly ignored for the duration of the film, we got some excellent development for the character of Tigress, who has now evolved to become my personal favorite character. While not much was given in terms of backstory, there’s hinted to be much more beneath her tough and barricaded exterior, and the way she bonds and acts as older sister to Po makes her a more endearing character than ever before. If there’s one thing the story of Kung Fu Panda did right, it was to give some much needed fleshing out to our favorite Chinese warriors.

SCORE: 3/5 GOLD COINS

HOW'S THE ACTING?

JAKE'S THOUGHTS: The voice acting was one of the standout things in the first Kung Fu Panda. Big name actors like Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, David Cross, Jack Black, and the almost always enjoyable Dustin Hoffman revisit their roles. The reason the voice acting worked so well in numero uno is that all of these actors were completely sold in their roles, never holding anything back. The same holds true for the sequel. 

The Furious Five

No one has missed a beat since the last adventure 3 years go, though Dustin Hoffman as Shifu and the rest of the Furious Five gang have a severe cut in dialogue.  Shifu being gone for most of the movie is more understandable as it wouldn't make much sense for him to join in on the adventure when the Dragon Warrior was accompanying them. But the Five's lack of a voice in this film is disappointing. Alot of the more memorable jokes from the first movie were from little quips the Five would say after Po had a particularly embarrassing moment. Now they more of mumble something here and there so that we don't forget that they're in this movie too. All that being said, they are stand outs in the action scenes, each member of the Five's fighting style complimenting the other's.

A new addition to the cast is Gary Oldman (The Dark Knight, Book of Eli) as Shen, the movie's protagonist peacock (never thought I would say that). Oldman does a very good job, but when does he not? He brings Shen to life as a three dimensional character that you love to hate. With that said, he isn't quite as good as Tai Long, the bad guy from movie number one. He can come off as whiny at points but this doesn't bring the film down any, more of any annoying thing I noticed. The voice acting is great all the way around with no one really faltering.
SCORE: 4/5 GOLD COINS

Oldman as a peacock.

DAN'S THOUGHTS: While I was walking into the theater to first see Kung Fu Panda 2, my moviecentric friend and eternal rival, Jake, informed me that Gary Oldman (known for his roles in Dark Knight, Harry Potter, and many other major films) would be playing the villain. All throughout the movie, I listened very carefully to Lord Shen’s (played by Oldman) every word and breath. Needless to say, I’m impressed. Gary Oldman can really throw his voice around, because I would never have known that was him without Jake’s helpful aid. ((Yes Jake, I give you permission to pat yourself on the back. But just this once!)) Though Shen is an interesting character on his own, it was Oldman who really brought him to life, giving him a subtle, conniving nature that might even throw another recently celebrated god of mischief around for the loop. 

Oldman as himself.

Jack Black, who returns alongside the Furious Five as the series namesake Dragon Warrior Po, gives the character as much life and charm as ever, cracking jokes and declaring justice with just as much enthusiasm and energy as the first film. Dustin Hoffman (who portrayed Captain Hook in Spielberg’s Hook) still brings his elderly, sagacious persona to the character of Master Shifu, helping the character to maintain his aura of wisdom and age. Tigress, voiced by Angelina Jolie, feels more alive than ever in this movie, especially in a few key scenes between herself and Poe. Honestly, I think Jolie actually improved her character this time around. Other minor characters, such as Mr. Ping (voiced by James Hong), Po’s adoptive goose father, really got a chance to shine this time around. Hong gave a particularly emotional performance when he narrates how Ping found Po, and raised him up as his own son. Michelle Yeoh, a new addition to the film who plays a goat soothsayer, also gives a memorable performance. 

Altogether, this was a very well-rounded cast, appetizing the audience with a variety of talented voice actors and charming us with a high level of enthusiasm.

SCORE: 4/5 GOLD COINS

WHAT ABOUT THE DIRECTING?

JAKE'S THOUGHTS: Jennifer Yuh. You may be asking yourself who that is. I was. She is the director of Kung Fu Panda 2...and that's about it. She directed a couple of episodes of the Spawn TV show that came out in the late 90's but this is her first big movie picture and she does a good enough job. 

Yuh falters in some respect; there are a couple of scenes that the jokes fall flat on their faces, and the pacing can feel awkward at points, along with some off beat segways in between scenes. But Yuh also succeeds on some important levels; she carefully develops Po into a deeper person (panda?) than we saw in the first movie, the kung fu scenes are truly awesome with dare I say cooler moves than the previous film, and the choice to use a 2D animation style for Po's flashback scenes was a smart move.

While the newcomer Yuh falters in some areas, she all in all does a good job for the movie, and really succeeds in the more emotional parts of the film.

SCORE: 3/5 GOLD COINS

DAN'S THOUGHTS: After working behind the scenes for several years as storyboard artist for many of Dreamwork’s key films (including Spirit, Sinbad, and Madagascar), Jennifer Yuh Nelson—a South Korean born American artist—makes her grand debut in this anticipated sequel of Kung Fu awesomeness. I have to admit—I’m always skeptical about handing delicate franchises over to inexperienced movie directors. But if there’s anything Nelson’s taught about that worry, it’s to give the little guy a chance. Nelson’s zealous and enthusiastic approach to this franchise is complimented by her adoration for Asian atmosphere and her attention to detail.

 First and foremost, Nelson has found a way to dramatically improve the action sequences that first earned the series its name. There’s a very fast-paced, almost graceful feel to each of the battles, now emphasizing teamwork and strategy, while giving each encounter a more “epic” feel. Nearly all the scenes flow as if they were rehearsed (which, I suppose, was the case), giving Kung Fu a less rough and aggressive, more elegant presence. Though the Furious Five may have not made as much impact in the movie in terms of character (sans Tigress), they more than make up for their absence where their fist is concerned. Or tail. Or wing. Whatever. 

Though none of this is technically new, it’s just so fun to see how the animators took so much liberty to create such diverse styles of fighting for each and every character. Well thought out indeed.

Why does Monkey look happy in this picture?

 Fighting aside, I’ve already expressed my admiration for Nelson’s character work, and though she may have to cut out a few of the needless jokes scattered throughout the movie to qualify other less-relevant characters for the sequel, her film-making formula has proven rock solid. Kudos to you, Madame!

SCORE 3/5 GOLD COINS

THE FINAL VERDICT?

JAKE'S THOUGHTS: Kung Fu Panda 2 is a good sequel. It's not as good as its predecessor; the story and villain aren't as good, jokes miss their mark, some scenes will just feel off, and besides Po and Tigris, the Furious Five kind of take a back seat in this adventure. With that said, Kung Fu Panda 2 does what a good sequel is supposed to do; make us love these characters more, entertain us, and get us ready for another sequel should there be one planned.

See it with the family, the kids will love it, and you will enjoy it. Just don't expect The King's Speech of animated movies.

SCORE: 3/5 GOLD COINS

DAN'S THOUGHTS: The highest praise I can give Kung Fu Panda 2 is that it is a sequel worthy of its predecessor. While feeling somewhat disingenuous now that a Kung Fu world populated with cute, fluffy animals is no longer a phenomenon, Panda nonetheless manages to deliver a compelling reason to follow his fast paced kick-buttery—the formula’s gone far from lame. Everything about this sequel actually builds upon the first. Sure, it’s nothing new, but it manages to make a movie that should be collecting dust by now seem fresh and exciting again. If you liked Po’s first outing, you’ll adore his second.

SCORE: 3/5 GOLD COINS