“I love Kung Fu Panda. That’s the same sentence that opened my write up for Kung Fu Panda 2. Except I always forget that I love Kung Fu Panda until I watch him again. And the joy comes flooding back.
I don’t know exactly what the magic is, but I think it’s a combination of things. Brilliant casting (Po is Jack Black at his finest), genius animation, engaging story, cute characters, and most of all some of the smartest and most clever dialog I’ve ever encountered, not just for a kiddie movie but over all. While 2 was a bit of a disappointment, 3 reminded me why I love this little fuzzball.
In case the plot even matters to you, this movie finds our dragon warrior, Po, fighting his most formidable foe to date. Kai, former BFF turned enemy of Master Oogway, has crossed over from the spirit realm to steal the chi of all the Kung Fu masters. Po must learn to become a master of chi in order to defeat Kai. While all of this is going on, Po is reunited with his father (voiced by Bryan Cranston, who delivered a performance that was skilled and masterful while simultaneously sounding like he was having so much fun), who wants to bring Po home to a secret panda village.
What’s important is how many chuckles and smiles this movie elicited from me. One clever line of dialog after another, and some beautiful animation sequences (it’s the simple ones that I love). The new additions to the cast JK Simmons, Kate Hudson, and the aforementioned Bryan Cranston fit in perfectly. I’m at a point where I’m not so quick to go to (non-Pixar) kids movies anymore, but this one was worth going to. (PS-3D not so much worth it. Didn’t even notice it at all)
Kung Fu Panda 3 -\m/ \m/ \m/ \n”