Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called the present.

Rating: 9/10 (28 October 2009)

DreamWorks' Kung Fu Panda, stands firmly with the best of the best of the cute-and-cuddly animal world movies. Rivaling the animation, storytelling, and characterization of the best Pixar films, Panda will tickle the funny bone, pull on the heart strings, dazzle with its death-defying action, and prove once and for all that it's what's in the heart that really counts.
In ancient China there was once a Kung Fu warrior so powerful that he blinded his enemies at the mere presence of his awesome power, and even the Furious Five, a group of China's most accomplished Kung Fu warriors, bowed down to him, at least in his dreams. In reality, he is merely a lowly, overweight panda named Po (voiced by Jack Black) who works in his father's noodle shop and cannot climb a flight of stairs without becoming short of breath. In reality, it is Po who worships the Furious Five, playing with their action figures and dreaming of one day being the hero they are. When it is announced that one of the Five will be awarded the title "Dragon Warrior," a recognition given to the most powerful Kung Fu Master of them all, Po heads to the Jade Temple, ascends the massive staircase but finds he is seconds late, the doors closing, shutting him out of seeing his heroes and one of the most important moments in Chinese history. When Po manages to literally drop into the arena from the sky, smack-dab into the middle of the ceremony, the ancient Master Oogway (voiced by Randall Duk Kim) chooses Po to be the Dragon Warrior! The Fabulous Five, particularly star pupil Tigress (voiced by Angelina Jolie), are outraged, but Oogway insists that Po is indeed the chosen one, and Master Shifu (voiced by Dustin Hoffman) is charged with the task of training the seemingly untrainable Panda, and all before the unstoppable enemy Tai Lung (voiced by Ian McShane) breaks free from captivity to wreak havoc on the Chinese countryside.
Besides the explosion of smartly and seamlessly computer-created characters and worlds that have dominated animation for the past several years, the best of a more recent vintage seem to share a similar running theme, espousing the importance of individuality, self-worth, and perseverance in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. In Cars, Lightning McQueen must discover that it isn't about being the flashiest or the fastest car on the track, or even winning the Piston Cup, but rather the importance of what's underneath the fancy tires, paint jobs, and engine: a heart. Ratatouille cooks up a theme that shows that no matter how small or insignificant one may be, no matter how reviled by others, no matter who says "no you can't," a sprinkle of determination, a pinch of heart, and a bowl full of positive attitude can take you anywhere. Likewise, in Kung Fu Panda, audiences come to know Po, a lovable, overweight Panda with big dreams -- and an equally large gut. Laughed at for playing with his Kung Fu toys, working a career pushed on him by a father (a duck, oddly enough) who thinks his son can do no better than the lot he's supposedly drawn, and believed to be too clumsy, too large, too unfocused to be a great Kung Fu warrior by all but, it seems, Fate. Po nevertheless tries his hardest, and with the help and blessing of a wise old friend and his master's acceptance of the fact that "there are no accidents," Po becomes not necessarily the best Kung Fu Master -- but the Master of the heart, of determination, of a never-say-die attitude that takes him to unbelievable heights, fulfills his destiny, and equally important, his dream. What makes Kung Fu Panda so special is that the film never insists that a character need drastically change in order to fulfill a dream or a prophesy or discover who they really are. Po's physique never alters -- he becomes capable of great things in spite of his waistline, the film smartly stating that it's what's inside that really matters.
Aside from the plainly obvious yet nevertheless heartwarming and uplifting message it espouses, Kung Fu Panda is, just as importantly, a wild, exciting, and particularly funny movie. Each character is well-scripted and interesting. While the "Furious Five" don't receive all that much in the way of exposition, they nevertheless manage to satiate audience appetites as lovable, endearing characters, certainly an odd mixture of creatures and each of them with unique abilities and personalities. Kung Fu Panda smartly focuses on its three primary players -- the film's title character, Po the Panda, Master Shifu, and the villainous Tai Lung. Clearly, Po is the centerpiece of the film, and his character never disappoints. One of the more endearing characters in recent memory, Po bumbles his way though the film, and the running theme of his love for food never becomes cumbersome. The film smartly integrates food into practically every sequence; Po works in his father's noodle shop; his love for a good meal is a major hindrance to his physical wherewithal -- and a detriment to his waistline; Master Shifu integrates food into Po's training regimen, exploiting his "weakness" for good. In fact, the gags never become old, and laughs abound throughout the film. A running joke, one that only becomes funnier every time it is incorporated into the film -- that of Po becoming short of breath and doubled over every time he must ascend to the top of the Jade Palace -- is smartly integrated into the story, and each time the joke is seen, it ends with varied comical consequences.