Jack Black
Bryan Cranston
Dustin Hoffman
Angelina Jolie
Kung Fu Panda 3 didn’t
wind me up as much as I thought it would. This third installment is filled with
easy-to-swallow gags, action-packed fun, and a nice family-friendly theme, but
the story was dull.
One thing I love
about this franchise—and the reason I’d give it a 6/10—is how the writers and
directors never leave any of the movies open-ended. Each film can stand alone,
so you don’t have to wait years to see the end of a story that began in Part 2.
Jennifer Yuh
Nelson returns as director (though she didn’t direct the first movie), and
Melissa Cobb is back as producer of the franchise.
For me, the
first movie in the series did the job, and the follow-ups to this DreamWorks 3D
animation have never quite lived up to the original.
It feels like in
every film, Po’s Dragon Warrior status is tested, and he has to level up to a
new tier of Kung Fu mastery to defeat the latest foe. In this one, he has to
step up by moving between worlds (spiritual and mortal) to become a chi master.
This time, the
antagonist, Kai, is a blast from the past—way back in Grand Master Oogway’s
history. Kai has decided to absorb everyone’s chi into himself to become
stronger. His quest brings us face-to-face with Po’s biological father and the
other pandas, who were thought to be extinct. This ties back to the second
movie, where Lord Shen led an army of wolves to exterminate the panda
population to prevent the prophecy that “a warrior of black and white” would
defeat him.
We learn that
some pandas survived and are living together in a secret colony. When Po’s
biological father, Li, learns of his son’s existence, he sets out to find him
and eventually brings him to the colony, promising to teach him how to master
chi.
Kai and Oogway
once met in a panda colony long ago, where Oogway learned the way of
chi—something Kai coveted for himself. Oogway had to banish Kai to the spirit
world, but after being locked away for over 500 years, Kai finds his way back
to the mortal world. Now, he’s continuing his quest to absorb all the chi and
become stronger than anyone else.
I think there
comes a time when a franchise needs to stop, Kung Fu Panda has already gone
overboard with its movies, and should stop.
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