Animated fable of finding the Dragon Warrior.

Rating: Null/10 (18 November 2008)

The biggest thing I took away from this movie is how much further digital animation has comes in just a few years since "Toy Story" and "A Bug's Life." Not that those are any worse for the wear, but what we see in "Kung Fu Panda" is a big step beyond the animated movies of just a few years ago. It is a marvel to view in high definition and with surround sound.
Jack Black stars as the Panda Po who admires kung fu and even has dreams where he is a master. But when he awakes he still works in his dad's noodle shop. (His dad is a goose, it is never explained how that happened). One day when a big ceremony is taking place to name the next Dragon Warrior, which is at the top of the kung fu domain, Po quite accidentally ends up falling from the sky and into the ceremony.
My favorite voice actor in this movie is Dustin Hoffman as the kung fu master, Shifu. He is identifying the new Dragon Warrior, and as Po falls from the sky Shifu picks him. Po is more shocked than anyone else.
So the movie is about Po making efforts to actually learn kung fu and against all odds actually become the master of masters, the Dragon Warrior.
Other key kung fu characters are Angelina Jolie as Tigress, Ian McShane, exceptional as the evil Tai Lung, Jackie Chan, funny as Monkey, Seth Rogen as Mantis, Lucy Liu as Viper, and David Cross as Crane.
Michael Clarke Duncan's deep voice is perfect as Commander Vachir of the high security prison where Tai Lung is being held.
Naturally the evil kug fu master gets away, and travels to claim the Dragon Warrior position for himself, and Po has to be the one who defeats him. But can he??
Good movie, lots of exciting animated action.