A very pleasant surprise

Rating: 9/10 (30 January 2016)

I heard about this movie when I saw the Deathly Hallows Part 1. It literally took me 5 seconds of watching the actual trailer before I thought to myself in disbelief, "They're not actually making another one are they?" Seriously! I heard Jack Black's voice and immediately knew what this was. Then, I forgot about it until the Super Bowl came around. And after that, I forgot about it again until a few weeks before the release date. But as the release date drew closer, I began thinking that this movie looked like it might be good. Eventually, I decided I would actually like to see this in theaters, so I went on Memorial Day.
All I could say after seeing this movie was "Wow". It was truly something else, something that I never would have dreamed of seeing in an animated film.
Where to start? Well, I was shocked at the beginning of the movie when we're learning some of Shen's background. The panda genocide wasn't surprising when I learned about the Soothsayer's prophecy, but it was surprising that we were discussing such a dark topic. I would've thought that the powers that be would consider it to be too "sensitive" for children, but I was impressed that it was being addressed.
This brings me to the villain who carried out this heinous act. Shen was a despicable being. He was cowardly, sadistic, and just delusional when it came to being "wronged" by his parents. I hated the guy and found Tai Lung to be a more likable character. But I believe that Shen presented more of a challenge to Po due to the negative psychological effect he had, whether it was from his feathers causing visions or his toying with Po before lying about the circumstances of his separation from his biological parents. Shen clearly got into Po's head. And he did something so terrible and traumatic that Po didn't even remember it for years. He did scar Po for life, but Po might not have found the means for progression as a kung fu master if it hadn't been for Shen's actions.
This is a big one for me. Tigress. Now, I'm not one of those people who fawned over this movie because they're in love with some pairing. No. But I did enjoy seeing Tigress open up more, and I was glad to see that her continual scowl from the first movie was replaced by a smile here and there. I noticed that she and Po seemed to be best friends, which had me wondering what happened between the first movie and this one to make her go from intense dislike to best friends. The hug she gave to Po and the reactions of the rest of the Five made me believe that her character development is somewhat attributable to him. This development came as a relief. I found myself wondering whether or not she'd treat him with a more mild form of her attitude from the first.
My only qualm was that Tigress' time in the spotlight meant that the rest of the Five took a place on the back burner. I noticed that in the first movie, too. However, considering the fact that they're with Po for the majority of this movie, they should either have spoken more or had lines that added to their characters or the plot in some way. Tigress is my favorite character among the Five, but there's a lot of talent among their actors, and I thought it was wasted by giving the characters 5 lines apiece.
I have to say that I enjoyed this movie way more than the first. I like a little darkness in my movies. I've heard some say that they didn't enjoy the movie as much for this reason, but being a movie geared toward kids doesn't mean that it can't address serious or even grim themes. I applaud the director and the writers for delving into this. Some of my praise must also go the composers, John Powell and Hans Zimmer, who managed to create a great score that perfectly matched the scenes in the film. I'd definitely say that this is one of Dreamworks' better movies. Regardless of whether or not you can empathize with what's happening in this movie, many can probably sympathize or even compare Po's search for the truth to their own experiences in some way. Kung Fu Panda 2 is definitely something that any person can potentially enjoy.