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Kung Fu Panda (2008)

Director: Mark Osborne, John Stevenson

Time Out rating

Average user rating

57 reviews

Movie review

From Time Out London

‘Kung-Fu Panda’ is one of those movies where one assumes the title came first and the entire plot was then extrapolated by committee. Rotund, noodle-selling bear Po (voiced by Jack Black) discovers that he is the living embodiment of an ancient Shaolin legend, which drives him to train as a martial arts expert and confront psychotic snow leopard Tai-Lung. He’s aided on his quest by crotchety Zen master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman) and his menagerie of high-flying wire-fu legends, the Furious Five.

There’s no chop-socky cliché too hackneyed for the filmmakers to make meat of. Inscrutable, riddle-spouting guru, check. Ancient mystical jade temple, check. Uptempo training montage, check. The setting is a sort of Disneyland version of ancient China, all fast-running waterfalls, snapping chopsticks and spiralling bamboo parasols. The script is as thin as rice paper and the characters, though likeable, are simply too plentiful, and too many of them feel short-changed.

The ending was extensively rewritten and it shows, limping to an underwhelming conclusion from which many of the best characters are inexplicably absent. But for all its faults, there’s something inescapably likeable about ‘Kung-Fu Panda’. Po is a winning hero, engagingly silly and offbeat, particularly in his workout scenes with the frustrated, irascible Shifu. Villain Tai-Lung, voiced with fearsome dignity by Ian McShane , is one of the best cartoon baddies since Shere Khan, and his prison-escape set piece is the standout here, explosive and enthralling.

This is where the movie comes into its own. The action sequences are often astounding, the high-octane animated choreography superbly executed. There’s nothing radical about the visuals themselves – the character and landscape design is entirely by-the-numbers. But we’ve never seen a cartoon move this fast before, the ‘camera’ leaping and swooping along with its gravity-proof protagonists.

As the credits roll, the film’s many flaws come sharply into focus. But while it lasts, ‘Kung-Fu Panda’ is something of a guilty treat.

Author: Tom Huddleston 2008-07-01 12:49:12

Time Out London Issue 1976, July 3 - 9 2008

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User reviews of this film

master tigress said...

Posted on Jul 06 2008 12:27 hey guys THE MOVIE IS GREAT i loved it to death i might even see it in the imax!

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claudia said...

Posted on Jul 06 2008 12:10 its a very funny movie for the whole family thats the best movie this month.

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frank said...

Posted on Jul 06 2008 12:07 I am going to see kung fu panda today.

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Pauline said...

Posted on Jul 05 2008 15:01 hi y'll im seeing the film 2day anad cant wait
saw the advert and it lokks FAB

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Charlotte. said...

Posted on Jul 05 2008 11:16 Im gonna go see Kung Fu Panda today, and I really want to see it now becuase of all the GREAT Comments people have wrote. x
Cant wait to see it!
Have a nice day everyone..
Ly.. Charlotte. <3 xx = )

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lee said...

Posted on Jun 29 2008 20:55 Brilliant movie

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hercules said...

Posted on Jun 29 2008 13:37 omg man this film is good! ahhh

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god said...

Posted on Jun 26 2008 12:07 this film was fron up here

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me said...

Posted on Jun 25 2008 10:43 watch sib .x.x.x

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wiskertons said...

Posted on Jun 25 2008 10:43 this fime was purrrfect for me

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bob said...

Posted on Jun 25 2008 10:34 it was gd lol still have naw palz but i was sitting my self in the picz and i was crying still am

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robbo said...

Posted on Jun 24 2008 17:05 so funi pmsl

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