Originally Posted By mawnck Just for the record ... if you're staying away from this because it's Dreamworks, then stop it. Yeah, I know, the trailers made it look like same old same old, but they really kicked it up several notches this time. The flick is gorgeous. Very cinematic, with several scenes that really stick with you. The story itself is an old chestnut, but so well done that you won't care. The characters are all well-conceived and entirely convincing. The fight scenes are just plain spectacular. And there are several. Other than a few stray Jack Black-isms (which I didn't notice and had to have pointed out to me), there are no pop culture references shoved in. Everything about the production stays focused on the story and the characters, like it should. AND there's some gorgeous 2D animation at the beginning by Baxter Animation, the same studio that did the stuff for Enchanted. They hit one out of the park here. Near PIXAR quality. Unquestionably superior to anything that's come out of Disney Feature Animation in the last several years. (Or Blue Sky, ever.) Who'd'a thunk that would ever happen? Still not convinced? OK, watch this. (It's a bit of a spoiler, though, so only watch it if you're not convinced.) <a href="http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=45324" target="_blank">http://www.comingsoon.net/news...id=45324</a> BTW - Stay for the entire credits, and pay attention to what's going on in the background. Lots of fun there too.
Originally Posted By imadisneygal It was fantastic, I agree. That said, I shielded my eyes when they put the Dreamworks logo on the screen. I can't help it, it's a visceral reaction!
Originally Posted By SoThisIsLove It was just totally awesome. DD15 took her daddy and I on Saturday for Father's Day and she promised we would love it. (Yeah, I was prejudiced at first and wasn't expecting to like it at all.)
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan Just got home from seeing "Kung Fu Panda" and I completely agree with the rave reviews above. Just a terrific movie -- beautiful to look at, especially the background settings and imagery. The character design was wonderful, too. Like Mawnck said, the fight scenes are incredible. And there are some huge laughs as well, but not non-sequiter pop culture stuff, but genuinely funny within the context of the story and characters. Well done, Dreamworks!
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan I forgot to mention the voices -- some big names but they don't play caricatures of themselves. That was refreshing and different. And except for the end credits, there's a beautiful musical score that doesn't have a hint of pop tunes sumperimposed over the action.
Originally Posted By DAR I have to concur I saw it a few days ago and will have no problem purchasing this one.
Originally Posted By FiveBearRugs My dad and I saw it on Sunday, and we both enjoyed it. I didn't stay for all of the end credits though, although seeing the cast really surprised me; they didn't sound like their 'usual' selves. I kind of rolled my eyes when I saw one of the actors in the film, but only because it seems like we're seeing more and more of him. The recipient of the 'and' billing also surprised me. Recycled story, but I liked the imagery and the backgrounds; The teasing where Po's father says "there's something you need to know" and the fact that it looked like they only used animals that are usually seen in China (not sure about the rhinos though, lol). Skidoosh!
Originally Posted By dshyates Great movie. Dreamworks best. As good as any PIXAR film to date. Wall.E withstading. I haven't seen it yet.
Originally Posted By gottaluvdavillains Geez what did I miss - I thought it had a good message at the end - but just a so so movie!
Originally Posted By utahjosh I liked Kung-Fu Panda more than Wall-E. And that's coming from a die-hard Disney/Pixar fan. I just thought Wall-E was boring.
Originally Posted By mawnck >>As good as any PIXAR film to date<< Wouldn't go that far. It has some story issues that wouldn't have survived PIXAR (but have been excused by some as a deliberate homage to similarly constructed Kung Fu movies).
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan I don't know about that. I'm not a fan of kung fu movies, but kung fu movies tend to have a lot in common with American westerns in terms of basic stoylines. So, the story is familiar in that sense, but for me, it worked on every level. One of the knocks against Dreamworks animated films was the poo-poo humor, the constant contemporry references. There's really none of that in this movie. It's a solid, family film, and the animation is lush, colorful. Would Pixar have made it differently? Of course -- different shop, different results. But as it stands, Kung Fu Panda really works. It's like debating if a really lovely children's book would have been better if it were published by Random House rather than Simon & Schuster.
Originally Posted By mawnck >>But as it stands, Kung Fu Panda really works.<< Not arguing about that. I'm the guy raving about KFP in the OP, y'know. Some of the grouses being raised against KFP (all of which are spoilers): (1) Just the general preposterousness of the whole concept. Evil Kung Fu master who trained for years and is capable of breaking out of the world's greatest maximum security prison with a duck feather is defeated by an out-of-shape incompetent who trained for three days. Not gonna happen. (2) As soon as we discover the scroll is blank, the whole rest of the movie becomes a moot point. Who cares if he gets it? (3) The most sympathetic character is the bad guy, who trained relentlessly for years to become the greatest living expert in his chosen field, only to be dissed by an old turtle, then betrayed by his master, then tortured in prison and then vaporized (?) by some fat lazy schlub. I'd be mad too. (4) The master really is an absolute jerk (Dustin Hoffman even said as much), and caused every single bit of the trouble. (5) The message of the movie: "Anything is possible if you believe in yourself, and by the way, talent, dedication and hard work have nothing whatsoever to do with it." These criticisms do not make it a bad movie, and I wasn't bothered by any of them while watching it. The good points completely outweigh and overpower the bad. The script is so well-written, the visuals so artistically thought out, the battles so exciting, the characters so fully realized that the plot holes just ... don't ... matter. All I was doing in post 13 was pointing out that we aren't quiiiiiite at PIXAR level here. (PS - Random House rocks! Simon and Schuster sucks! )
Originally Posted By Dabob2 Yeah, I wouldn't put KFP at the level of the best of the Pixars either, but it's easily Dreamwork's best so far. I'm seeing Wall-E tomorrow.
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan The script is so well-written, the visuals so artistically thought out, the battles so exciting, the characters so fully realized that the plot holes just ... don't ... matter.<< I agree with you there. >>"Anything is possible if you believe in yourself, and by the way, talent, dedication and hard work have nothing whatsoever to do with it."<< Yeah, kinda. But I saw it more as someone living up to potential once people (er, critters) believed in him, and he in himself. SPOILER ALERT: Also, his defense against attack seemed to be an imperviousness to certain hits due to girth. His blubber made him ticklish. But seriously, dude. Random House??? Come on.....
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan Not to knock Pixar, either, but there was a major plot hole/leap in logic in Finding Nemo. Unless, of course, Sydney Harbor is filled with raw sewage.
