How do you like them pandas?

Rating: 7/10 (27 December 2011)

Kung Fu Panda is formulaic and harmless fun. It doesn't lean too heavily on the morals, thankfully eschews the usual pop culture references and disposable pop songs that hopelessly date the movie only years afterward, and definitely doesn't take itself too seriously.
But despite the fact that it is hardly vital cinema it is an OK film that manages to survive some deplorable Hollywood laziness and provide a non-Saw alternative to the 10-14s in the household. I would pigeonhole it as 'reasonably family friendly light entertainment' and nothing more.
Well this reasonably family friendly light entertainment made over 600 million dollars! To paraphrase one Will Hunting "How do you like them Pandas?" The tale of this well meaning yet clumsy and decidedly non kung-fu expert's rise to the top is the stuff of every second kung fu film in the 70s to be honest. Take someone with no apparent traits of a champion, give them a trainer who seems to not believe in him/her, throw in some training montages that find our hero believing in themselves and cut to them holding the trophy/prize/severed head of their nemesis.
In this case the unwitting hero is pudgy Panda – voiced by pudgy Jack Black – in fact if you aren't a Jack Black fan or simply can't stomach his shtick move on, because his dialogue is infused with so many JB mannerisms and speech patterns that your feelings toward the man may dictate your enjoyment level.
I like him. In small doses.
Panda is ordained as the Dragon Warrior in front of the resentful Furious 5 who have trained their entire lives for the very honour Panda accidentally falls into. The Furious 5 are a group of highly trained martial arts experts of various breeds; a tiger, a monkey, a crane, a praying mantis and a snake (the names of various fighting styles).
They are voiced by an all star cast of unnecessary celebrity cameo cash-ins that smacks of free publicity, and I say that knowing full well Jackie Chan is among them. That said I will not bother acknowledging their lack of input to the film any further.
The 5 are trained by Master Shi Fu (Dustin Hoffman), who I think is a possum or something?? Nonetheless he is a master teacher, and upon finding he must train Panda to become the Dragon Warrior and defend the entire village of random rabbits, ducks and pigs he is immediately aghast and feels dishonoured, though he is gradually talked around by his own master, an elderly turtle named Master Ugwei. The 5 are also resentful of this unskilled interloper and generally make no secret of this fact, especially the tigress who felt that it was she who would be named Dragon Warrior.
The training sequences are a little flat to be honest, but contain enough moments of humour and pratfalls to keep the kids interested. I liked Panda's Dad – who is a duck – and his constant references to the 'noodle dream' amused me for no known reason. Most of all I liked a sequence in the middle of the film where the main nemesis for Panda is introduced, a fearsome creature named Tai-Lung. His escape from a mountain fortress is both incredibly animated and well choreographed. This is also perhaps the main impediment to the littlies liking the film, as Tai-Lung is so well rendered and so effective a foe, that I think it might put the fear of god into any kids under say 8 or 9, which is a bit of a shame, as three quarters of the film is perfect for all ages.
Ultimately Kung Fu Panda wasn't nearly as 'awesome' as it was promoted, but it definitely wasn't bad either.
Final Rating – 6 / 10. A solid animated film for kids aged (maybe) 9 and up, with enough jokes for the adults and kids alike, and some non-threatening action to inspire the kids to go home and kick p*ss out of their younger siblings.