Kung Fu Panda

(PG) Voice talents of Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Dustin Hoffman, Lucy Lui, Seth Rogen

Po (Jack Black) the Panda is a little on the cuddly side and works in his father’s noodle shop but he dreams of one day being like his Kung Fu idols the legendary Furious Five (who are Tigress, Crane, Mantis, Viper and Monkey).

So when he is seemingly accidentally chosen to fulfil an ancient prophecy, nobody is more confused about this than Master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman) how has trained the Furious Five to take their rightful place.

Before they have time to lament Po’s lack of kung fu skills, the vengeful snow leopard Tai Lung is headed their way and Po has to put his heart and girth into fulfilling his destiny.

This has a really engaging story and many wise words from Oogway the wise turtle, like “yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, live for today it’s a gift — that’s why it’s called the present” and “One often meets his destiny on the road he takes to avoid it.”

The primary theme seems to be “believe in yourself and you can overcome all obstacles”, as is typical of many animated films these days, but it is so fast and furious with some entertaining set pieces that such clichés are soon forgotten.

It also helps that Po is such a likeable character, in large part due to the talent of Jack Black. Po is a fantastic character. He is good natured, despite the Furious Five doing their best to crush his will.

When he makes embarrassing gaffes, like eating heartily from the sacred peach tree or washing “his pits” with water from The Sea of Forgotten Tears, his mix of haplessness and remorse is all the more lovable for it.

The presence of Jackie Chan in the voice cast (as Monkey) means that this hilarious film at least has a master’s approval.

Guaranteed to generate lots of discussion (it already has in the Insights office!) it’s nice to have an animated film that isn’t a sequel and that doesn’t contain talented penguins.

Adrian Drayton