Culture

Directed by: Jennifer Yuh, (3.5/5).

Kung Fu Panda 2 is a visual power-punch despite its sloppy narrative footwork. It opens with a marvelous animation technique influenced by Chinese paper cutting, the first of three different types of animation used in this visually expert and creative Dreamworks film.
 
The protagonist, a black and white overweight panda named Po, is voice acted by Jack Black. Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan, Gary Oldman, Dustin Hoffman, Lucy Liu and Seth Rogen join Black in an allstar cast who elevate the professional status of this film. The story follows Po and the Furious Five on their journey to Gong City where an evil peacock, Shen, has introduced machine power, which poses a threat to kung fu. Po soon learns that in the past, the awful Shen was the perpetrator of the eradication of the panda species, which leads to the exploration of more human (despite all the animals!) and darker elements. Po discovers, through a mystical he-she goat, that he needs to conquer his inner-peace by ‘catching the unbroken raindrop’.
 
The plot follows the typical Dreamworks ‘one and a half hills’ style. In the first half of the film the central conflict peaks and evil prevails. However, through the failure of the good, Po discovers the strength and ability to once again face this increasingly dangerous conflict and triumph after all. The ending incorporates an isolated but linked twist which provides the base for another film to be made. Hello, sequel! If we look away from the predictability and adopt the mind set of five to ten year old child, excitement and slapstick humor bursting forth from red and yellow fireworks is what we will see.
 
Kung Fu Panda 2 is a spectacle of ‘it’s-so-fluffy’ animals doing kung fu. The simple narrative is almost balanced by the film makers’ attention to intricate details which connect together to create an astoundingly admirable work of animation. Most likely, this is a film whose admission fee wouldn’t be incorporated into a student budget. However, Kung Fu Panda 2 still is one that caters for an individual wanting an easy-going, fun time. Take your younger siblings to it.