This 'Panda-monium' is Music to The Ears!

Rating: 9/10 (13 August 2015)

In Kung Fu Panda, Jack Black provides the voice of Po, a portly panda who joylessly serves noodles in his father's shop. Po is a self-effacing kung-fu fanatic who daydreams of being a great warrior - in his head; Po destroys thousands of enemies, blinding them with the glare of his awesomeness. His plus-size silliness and an honest-to-goodness love for old school kung-fu set the stage perfectly for everything that follows. He idolizes both the art of kung-fu and legendary local fighters the Furious Five - Tigress (Angelina Jolie), Monkey (Jackie Chan), Mantis (Seth Rogen), Viper (Lucy Liu) and Crane (David Cross), together proving to be a terrific voice cast. Under the watchful eye of a kung-fu master, a critter named Shifu (Dustin Hoffman), the Five stand by knowing one among them will be chosen as the prophesied Dragon Warrior when the time comes.
Soon Shifu's master, the wizened turtle Oogway, declares it's time to choose the new master. But he doesn't select one of the well-prepared Furious Five to protect the Valley of Peace; instead he picks our slovenly, rotund hero instead as the fabled Dragon Warrior. Now afforded an opportunity to demonstrate his worth, Po tries desperately to prove himself to wise old Master Shifu and his new, skeptical dojo-mates. A lot of comic mischief ensues, as Po topples over, bumps into things and sends stuff flying like a fat, furry version of the Chuckle Brothers. The Five, initially seen as spiteful of Po's sudden fame, soon accede to the temple master, while Shifu learns to let go of his past failures and appreciate the wisdom of Oogway.
Then something rather wonderful happens, ratcheting the film up to the dizzying heights. In an exhilarating sequence, Tai Lung – the psychotic snow-leopard who wants to get his hands on the Dragon Scroll that will afford him infinite power- escapes by negotiating the three fiendish levels of the jail in a flurry of punches, kicks and gravity-defying leaps that culminate in a magnificent series of vertigo-inducing shots. Everything comes together at the finale, when Po, having learned that his technique is based on his appetite, faces off against Tai Lung.
As Po, Jack Black provides goof-ball hyperbole at its 'Jack Blackiest'. With an over-amped bravado and childlike excitement, he creates a memorable slacker who, in spite of himself, still manages to rise to the occasion. He's well-matched by Hoffman, who gives the diminutive Shifu a brooding soul and a sage humor. Co-directors Mark Osborne and John Stevenson mix Black's good humor with breathtaking animated action sequences, allowing the film to play out as one heck of a tribute to the martial arts genre. From the devilishly clever sequence where the Furious Five take on Tai Lung on an unraveling rope bridge, to a hugely enjoyable training sequence between Shifu and Po and the final showdown between Po and Tai Lung, directors Mark Osborne and John Stevenson take advantage of the limitless possibilities of CGI to bring us action on a scale, and of a type, rarely seen before.
At the end, Kung Fu Panda proves to be dazzling, clever entertainment. The adventures of Po earn every smile, every gasp, every eye-popping thrill, and they do it all with a hearty, winking "Skidoosh!"