Review: Kung Fu Panda 2

At least Kung Fu Panda 2 has a killer third act following its middling first two, rather than the other way around because, this way, viewers won’t leave feeling so disappointed. It’s a convenient benefit of the film’s structure–the battle sequences, of which the last 30 minutes are chock-full, fare far better than the rest–but the fact remains that most of the movie is a bore. And even though the visuals are astounding, you will hardly realize it if you see the movie in dim and murky 3-D (as critics did), crossing off the only way it might immerse in spite of its narrative shortcomings.

You would think that writers Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger (who did such a nice job with the original), got the basic ideas from watching a few hours of Nickelodeon. They are tireder than an untreated sleep apnea patient who has just worked a double-shift as a farmhand, to the point at which even a seven-year-old who has spent enough time watching that channel may call BS. Po (Jack Black), hot off of being crowned Dragon Warrior in the first film, rejoins the Furious Five (Angelina Jolie’s Tigress, Seth Rogen’s Mantis, Jackie Chan’s Monkey, David Cross’ Crane, and Lucy Liu’s Viper). Their task: defend the kingdom when the evil peacock Lord Shen (Gary Oldman) attempts to enact his age-old vow to take it over, using a new weapon he swears by. That’s pretty much all there is to the central plot, so Aibel and Berger also interweave the story of how Lord Shen forced Po’s real parents to abandon him as a baby. You read that right: Po’s biological father is not the noodle-making stork Mr. Ping (James Hong). Surprise? More like yawn.

A stale story would have been forgivable had other elements picked up the slack, but they don’t. Despite the return of the first film’s seasoned voice-cast, the characters aren’t nearly as fresh or entertaining by themselves, this time around. This is once again the fault of Aibel and Berger, who underwrite them. Po is the only character the audience learn more about on a deeper level, but given such knowledge comes in the form of a cliché “discovering one’s identity” subplot, it hardly even counts. There are some amusing throwaway lines–Mantis has an hysterical bit about his future soul-mate–but they hardly make up for the fact that Aibel and Berger ultimately engage the characters at a bare-minimum level. As in the new Pirates of the Caribbean film, everything becomes about servicing an already-too-simple plot… to the point at which the rich and funny characters we love get lost in the shuffle.

That said, the film’s extended finale is a real treat and, ironically, gives the audience a better flavor for the characters in its action-heavy moments than they get in any of the more contemplative ones earlier on. Gorgeously animated (especially, I assume, without those pesky 3-D glasses), full of wit, and perfectly edited to have climactic weight, director Jennifer Yuh does justice to the early kung fu films that inspired the sequence. Leaving the theater, viewers may forget just how many times they checked their watches during the first hour, thanks to what exuberant fun the Furious Five’s inevitable showdown with Lord Shen is. Given the film’s surefire financial success and a clear path for the sequel set up by its very last scene, one hopes Aibel and Berger can get their act together and restore a more consistent level of entertainment to the series, next time around.

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Kung Fu Panda 2 (2011, USA). Produced by Jonathan Aibel, Glenn Berger, Melissa Cobb, and Guillermo del Toro. Directed by Jennifer Yuh. Written for the screen by Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger. Featuring the voices of Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Gary Oldman, Seth Rogen, Jack Black, Jackie Chan, Dustin Hoffman, David Cross, Lucy Liu, and Jean-Claude Van Damme. Distributed by Paramount Pictures. Rated PG, with a running time of 90 minutes.