"You wanna go see Kung Fu Panda?" "....Yes."

Rating: 8/10 (29 June 2008)

Since the explosion of computer generated animation onto the big screen in recent years, Dreamworks has been the main perpetrator in overexposing the world to the genre. For every brilliant, nurtured and expertly crafted Pixar creation there is a lazy Dreamworks equivalent, heavily relying on pop culture references and famous voice talent to disguise the fact that the films suck. Yes, I'm including Shrek in this. It is a bad movie and after just seven years looks ridiculously dated. So what does any of this have to do with Kung Fu Panda? Well, because somehow Dreamworks have managed to perform a complete U-turn in their thinking and release an animated movie that isn't just good, it is excellent. I say 'somehow,' although it doesn't take William James Sidis to realise that when Pixar are receiving ten times more critical and commercial acclaim than you are, following their blueprint for success might just be a good idea.
So what is detailed on this blueprint? A good storyline for a start, which in Kung Fu Panda is essentially Star Wars without the stars. A Panda named Po dreams of becoming a martial arts master whilst stuck in his day job at the noodle restaurant (which, you know, is so indicative of Chinese culture.) He gets his shot when Yoda makes Obi-Wan Kenobi take Po as a padawan and train him in the ways of the kung fu force just in time to combat the evil Darth Vader, who has recently escaped from a prison staffed entirely by rhinos and is looking to exact bloody vengeance on his former master and rule the Chinese galaxy. Except in this case Yoda is a tortoise named Oogway, Obi-Wan is...something called Shifu and Vader is a snow leopard named Tai Lung. Additionally, there are five other martial arts masters, the legendary Furious Five (a tiger, a crane, a mantis, a viper and a monkey), who were trained by Shifu and do not take kindly to Po's intrusion into their perfectly balanced lives. Intersperse this with several scenes of ass kicking seemingly lifted from Jackie Chan's 'Legend of the Drunken Master' and you have one potent recipe for success.
However, the characters must be interesting and likable for the story to work. Thankfully they all are. From the initial dream narration of Jack Black's eponymous panda (his first truly funny role since 'School Of Rock') through to the final scene, the excellent voice work coupled with the stellar animation brings each and every character satisfyingly to life. Stand-outs include Dustin Hoffman as master Shifu, Ian McShane, who introduces a sense of dignity into Tai Lung not consistent with bad guys in children's films, and Randall Duk Kim as Oogway, who receives some of the funniest lines. He also pulls the best facial expressions.
The only problem with Kung Fu Panda is the relative under-utilisation of the Furious Five. Here we have characters voiced by the likes of Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu and David Crane and they are not really given enough chances to speak at all. Jackie Chan's Monkey, for instance, has about three lines of dialogue. Also, aside from their fantastic fight scene against Tai-Lung, they have little to do. This is clearly something to be exploited for the inevitable sequels, unless the whole word goes mental and decides to see Shrek 4 in record numbers, prompting parts 5 to 8 to be rushed into production instead of KFPII. Luckily, the world will then explode from the sheer irrationality of that event ever happening, so we'll never have to see them.
Basically, Dreamworks have produced a movie that both fans and people that intensely dislike their studio will enjoy. Sure, it probably won't be as rewarding as Pixar's Wall-E but who cares? As master Oogway says, "Quit, don't quit. Noodles, don't noodles." Think about that one. Or don't.