Banana Scoop

With Cars 2 pretty much out of the way for the best animated picture of the year, Dreamworks has a pretty good chance at nabbing the spot with their two blockbusters this year: Kung Fu Panda 2 and Puss in Boots.  I’ve finally gotten a chance to see Kung Fu Panda 2, the sequel to the very enjoyable original Kung Fu Panda released in 2008.  As with most sequels [once again as exemplified in Cars 2], it’s risky to come up with both an engaging and original story.  But with a strong emotional story and fleshing out its likable supporting players in balance with its lead, Kung Fu Panda 2 exceeds my expectations and is, in my opinion, the best shot of best animated picture of the year.

Po, the Dragon Warrior (voiced by Jack Black), is living his dream as a kung fu master with his best friends the furious five [who have since then are more involved and show a lighter sense of humor].  When he and his team hear news of kung fu masters being defeated by Lord Shen (voiced deliciously evil by Gary Oldman) and his weapon of mass destruction (fireworks), they set out on a journey that makes Po confront himself with his mysterious past with which he must come to terms with in lieu of saving all of China.

pew pew!

The story itself is very well paced and original in its own right.  Drawing on China’s history as the first users of fireworks, the idea their weaponization was most welcome as the story compared to Po just fighting another dangerous kung fu fighter [which is one reason that most sequels fail: in their mistake of replicating the original too much].  The journey takes us beyond the valley the first movie was mostly set in, as we see a range of settings from oceans, to mountains, to the beautiful city, to a forested area painted by rain.  Each of these are beautifully rendered and are as eye dropping as the next and are comparable to seeing the features in real life.  The story’s primary character conflict lies in Po dealing with his past.  This undertone story carries significantly more emotional depth and is ultimately more satisfying than the general and vague moral of the first one.

Besides the return of Po, his supporting characters from the first movie including the Furious Five, Po’s father, and Master Shifu are most welcome as most of them are more involved with the story instead of playing the one dimensional characters they were in the first movie, exempting mainly Master Shifu.  This is the first main thing I noticed different from the first movie.  While the Furious Five don’t have extremely relevant dialogue, they’re more involved with some of the humor and their playful banter is most welcome in balancing some of the more serious parts of the movie.  The movie’s main villain, Lord Shen, provides a far more evil and darker enemy who isn’t to be underestimated and whose motivations are much more terrifying and compelling.

Dreamworks Animation has always delivered beautiful animation and combined with China’s vibrant and colorful culture, they managed to encapture all the magical and mystifying aspects of China.  They frequently switched scenes between the real life as well as a cartoon tribute to Chinese animation that worked as effective flashbacks and dream sequences.  I’ve already mentioned the beautiful settings they rendered and equally beautiful is the animation of the exciting kung-fu scenes.  As each character specializes in the kung fu of their animal, seeing Lord Shen’s style of fighting, that combines his talons, feathers, hidden daggers, and advanced kung fu, was a delight to see as it clashed with several other masters.

Kung Fu Panda 2, in my opinion, surpassed the original in terms of characterization, story, and animation.  In thanks of making a fantastic 1st movie, we were safely able to go beyond the valley and to take our characters to new places and new villains that allowed them to be fleshed out which resulted in a stronger resolution and satisfying conclusion.  I wouldn’t mind seeing Po and friends again if it held the same quality of this installment of this rightfully successful franchise.

4.5/5 Stars