Fur flies in battle heavy 'Kung Fu Panda 2'
Jack Black is back in the voice-over booth as Po. (DreamWorks Animation)
Kung Fu Panda 2
Running time: 90 minutes
MPAA rating: PG (sequences of martial arts action and mild violence)
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In the first animated family comedy "Kung Fu Panda," we learned what funny guy Jack Black might look like if he was born a noodle-making panda named Po in fictional ancient cartoon China.
And, oh yeah, that heroes come in all shapes and sizes, even roly-poly pandas.
The sequel, aptly titled "Kung Fu Panda 2," offers these insights:
That loving goose that runs the village noodle shop is not Po's natural father after all. (Take a second if you need it to get over the shock.)
And perhaps most importantly, audiences will be told that the best way to fight really, really well is to find inner peace.
That's a pretty thin story arc for a movie franchise featuring the voices of A-list stars like Black, Angelina Jolie (Tigress), Jackie Chan (Monkey), Seth Rogen (Mantis), Lucy Liu (Viper), Dustin Hoffman (Master Shifu) and others.
From this aisle seat, the first time around in 2008 was a novel hoot. Po learned to kung fu fight with his idols, the kung fu masters listed above, and generated a ton of fun going through the process.
The sequel, written by the same team of Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger, feels a little strained when it comes to story fodder. Jennifer Yuh Nelson moves up from head of story on the original "Kung Fu Panda' to the director's chair in this one, and may still have a little to learn when it comes to battle overkill vs. character development and depth.
And while I'm on my soap box, the bow to the unnecessary trend of pushing 3-D glasses for a premium price is not only unnecessary, it's ineffective.
To me, the animation looks a little muddy and less defined for the second Po go. And the emphasis is on fighting, which is sometimes creative but repetitive and boring at other times.
Gary Oldman, who hammed it up recently as wolf-hunter Father Solomon in "Red Riding Hood," brings gusto to his vocal role. He's Lord Shen, a peeved peacock that embraces the Industrial Age only to forge cannons to wipe out his foes and, while he's at it, kung fu.
Young children might delight in all the mayhem. Adults who bring them, however, are likely to be yawning before Po even raises a paw to bid farewell to his Pa.
Duty calls, you see, even for a fun-loving panda that would probably rather hang around the kitchen and see how many noodles he can stuff into his furry mug.
Since movie studios need to worry about bottom line profit margin and pandas do not, I get the feeling that once around the kung fu block was enough for Po.
It certainly was for me.
And, oh yeah, that heroes come in all shapes and sizes, even roly-poly pandas.
The sequel, aptly titled "Kung Fu Panda 2," offers these insights:
That loving goose that runs the village noodle shop is not Po's natural father after all. (Take a second if you need it to get over the shock.)
And perhaps most importantly, audiences will be told that the best way to fight really, really well is to find inner peace.
That's a pretty thin story arc for a movie franchise featuring the voices of A-list stars like Black, Angelina Jolie (Tigress), Jackie Chan (Monkey), Seth Rogen (Mantis), Lucy Liu (Viper), Dustin Hoffman (Master Shifu) and others.
From this aisle seat, the first time around in 2008 was a novel hoot. Po learned to kung fu fight with his idols, the kung fu masters listed above, and generated a ton of fun going through the process.
The sequel, written by the same team of Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger, feels a little strained when it comes to story fodder. Jennifer Yuh Nelson moves up from head of story on the original "Kung Fu Panda' to the director's chair in this one, and may still have a little to learn when it comes to battle overkill vs. character development and depth.
And while I'm on my soap box, the bow to the unnecessary trend of pushing 3-D glasses for a premium price is not only unnecessary, it's ineffective.
To me, the animation looks a little muddy and less defined for the second Po go. And the emphasis is on fighting, which is sometimes creative but repetitive and boring at other times.
Gary Oldman, who hammed it up recently as wolf-hunter Father Solomon in "Red Riding Hood," brings gusto to his vocal role. He's Lord Shen, a peeved peacock that embraces the Industrial Age only to forge cannons to wipe out his foes and, while he's at it, kung fu.
Young children might delight in all the mayhem. Adults who bring them, however, are likely to be yawning before Po even raises a paw to bid farewell to his Pa.
Duty calls, you see, even for a fun-loving panda that would probably rather hang around the kitchen and see how many noodles he can stuff into his furry mug.
Since movie studios need to worry about bottom line profit margin and pandas do not, I get the feeling that once around the kung fu block was enough for Po.
It certainly was for me.
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