Kung Fu Panda

Kung Fu Panda: 8.25/10

If you ask my friends, I'm a cold, heartless bastard when it comes to movies. Typically attracting me to films like No Country for Old Men, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and so on. But I, like many have a soft spot for well executed, funny, entertaining, and appropriately short, animated features. I am a professed fan of Finding Nemo and Over the Hedge, and now, Kung Fu Panda. With the tag-line, "Prepare for awesomeness" you know the animators and writers had Jack Black in mind and marketed it accordingly. While it follows the formula for action/adventure movies with a opening sequence of the characters dreams and aspirations before you set along the path which you already know will lead said character to the achievement of these dreams, execution of this is all that really matters. Jack Black executes superbly, and surprisingly alone. Angelina Jolie has the fourth most lines in the film, and you will barely notice her character talking. The great David Cross comes in third. The other characters, two of which have possibly a single line in the entire movie, seem well explained, emotionally understandable to the audience, and are superbly animated even without much dialogue. Keep your eye on the acupuncture scene, its hilarious, and actually explains the final sequence very nicely yet, subtly, which was refreshing after Zohan.

This movie truly is a family movie and is for sure another excellent addition to the animated ranks. The kung fu is plentiful and hilarious, along with the antics of Po, which Jack Black seemingly torn from real life and attached to a fat panda. This movie is a MUST SEE in theaters, and a for sure Blu Ray purchase in the fall.