derivative storyline bolstered by decent execution

Rating: 6/10 (12 May 2009)

As voiced by funnyman Jack Black, Po is just your average Chinese panda with dreams of one day becoming a world-class kung fu fighter (isn't that what all pandas living in China want to be?). When he's chosen by The Master to become the new Dragon Warrior, a position that brings virtually unlimited power to the individual who holds it, Po is thrown into round-the-clock training sessions to help groom him for the role - kind of like Eliza Doolittle on steroids.
The plot of "Kung Fu Panda" - with its echoes of "The Karate Kid" and even of "Star Wars" in its portrayal of teacher/pupil relationships - is fairly derivative in nature and lacks the kind of strong secondary characters we've come to expect from computer-animated films (no slam intended on the voice-over work by Dustin Hoffman, Ian McShane, Angelina Jolie, Lucy Liu, Seth Rogen and Jackie Chan).
Still, there is sufficient energy, wit and visual inventiveness in the movie to captivate the little ones while keeping the rest of us from actively storming the box office and demanding our money back. This is most definitely not one of the "great ones," as animated features go, but it is short and pleasant enough to at least earn it a spot in the recommended column.