Column:
'Kung Fu Panda': Collaborative efforts pay off
Published June 11, 2008
I don’t think it’s fair to call pandas lazy, as most reviews thus far have pegged our leading man in "Kung Fu Panda." Po, the title panda, is hard working and well acquainted with the antiquities of the art of kung fu. Perhaps if he were a slim panda, Po could catch a break. Luckily, amidst this film’s fluid animation and storyline, this is the least of our worries.
In Mark Osborne and John Stevenson’s production of "Kung Fu Panda," animators at DreamWorks SKG accomplish something they have been unable to in the past — cleanly drawn lines. Aside from the Cinderella storyline, "Kung Fu Panda" is a delight to see, not only in that it’s all in CG, but in that the character design and patternmaking are more fluid than ever before.
DreamWorks does something Pixar stays away from, and that’s the invention of detail. The spot on Tigress’ (Angelina Jolie, "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider") forehead looks like a spade. Master Oogway (Randall Duk Kim, "The Matrix Reloaded"), the crazy old turtle who seems to have studied under Tarantino’s Pai Mai character (master of the five-point palm exploding heart technique), has beautifully patterned green skin. With the skin’s dots perfectly placed it’s almost as if one of the animators nabbed a blouse from his boutique-wandering girlfriend’s closet and threw it onto his model. Stevenson, who has an extensive background in animation and storyboarding, and Osborne, whose expertise lies in short films, make a great team because they’ve taken the framework from a western and turned it into something both luminous and enjoyable. Even the introductory sequences supplement elements we’ve seen in favorites such as "Mulan" and jazzy animes like “Samurai Champloo” - and yet they manage to keep an excess of far eastern elements at bay.
Panda does not poke fun at Kung Fu, it just brings it onto the kitchen table. Even the most devoted fan of kung fu films will enjoy Po’s enthusiasm and the directors’ nod to Stephen Chow’s comedic "Kung Fu Hustle."
Storywriters Ethan Reiff and Cyrus Voris, a dynamic duo together since the late ‘80s, create a loveable hero in Po (Jack Black), a daydreaming Panda who longs to work under the crafty hands of Shifu (Dustin Hoffman, "The Graduate"). Reiff and Voris, the writers of "Bulletproof Monk," seem to have mastered storytelling as far as ancient scrolls go. Screenplay writers Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger also do well in creating a funny yet clean script. No butt jokes here, but we do receive a glimmer of sadomasochism during Po’s initial training. Frankly, the most pleasant part of "Kung Fu Panda" is that the characters look nothing like their voice actors. This is where "A Shark’s Tale" failed by capitalizing on the overload of A-list stars taking more than their share of cameos. "Panda" is definitely more story and less stars, which makes it easier to watch the second time around. Jackie Chan voices Monkey and hardly speaks. There aren’t as many gimmicks — the animals through which our characters are being projected aren’t taken advantage of. "Madagascar" fell into that gap, as did "Over the Hedge."
The only problem is there isn’t much closure at the end. Or maybe I just didn’t want the fun to finish. Either way, "Kung Fu Panda" is out in theaters — go watch it, buy cotton candy, popcorn, drinks, Milk Duds. Go all out, your inner child will thank you later.
My Rating: 4 out of 5