Now Playing: Kung Fu Panda 2 (2011)

I have been itching to see Kung Fu Panda 2 ever since it came out, but I've just never had the time. A late afternoon decision was going to change all of that though. With some quick planning and some good timing I was able to find my way north to meet up with a friend and see it at the only theater my free movie points would work at that was still playing it in 3D. I decided to catch it in 3D after Mike on the Media Pulp podcast said it was possibly the best use of 3D he'd seen since Avatar, and maybe even better. After hearing that, I had to check it out! More of my thoughts after the jump... SKADOOSH!!


The story this time focuses on the return of Shen, a peacock who is the son of the previous rulers of the capitol city. He had been banished after he started experimenting with fire works to make weapons instead of to bring joy. A prophecy which told of his eventual defeated caused him to strike out against whoever he felt matched the description. Flash forward, Po is now the "Dragon Warrior" and he "The Five" to back him up at all times. With news of Shen's return, Po, Tigress, Viper, Monkey, Mantis and Crane are sent to stop him and save all of China.

Baby Po

A key element to the story, though, is Po's curiosity about where he came from. For those who remember from the first movie, when we first meet Po, he's working for his father in a noodle shop. One problem, his father is a goose. Strange how he never really noticed the difference until now. He may be the Dragon Warrior, but he's just not that quick. But it's in this film where Po finally confronts his kind old father about his true origins.

The animation quality in this movie is fantastic. This has to be one of the best animated movies I've seen in a very long time. In addition, the 3D was amazing! The varying levels of depth was jaw dropping, and as fast paced as the action was, I never experienced any blurring or distortion with the images. I wish more 3D was done like this! On the Media Pulp podcast it was said this is possibly the best 3D he'd ever seen, possibly even better than Avatar, and I'd certainly have to agree.

Standing out above all else is the stunning action and martial arts on display. Every fight is fast and frenetic and always cool. It's also really cool that each of the animals uses a different fighting style, all based on the actual fighting styles named after the animals that they are. For example Mantis uses the real "Mantis style" Kung Fu. Very cool.

The last thing I want to bring up is how great all the characters are. They're still just as great as they were in the first movie, although we don't spend quite as much time with them all like we did in the original film as it was there that they had to introduce them. Nevertheless, we're still have an amazing all-star cast of voice talent in the film. Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Dustin Hoffman, Gary Oldman, Jackie Chan, Jean-Claude Van Dam, Lucy Liu, Seth Rogan and David Cross are only some of the talent you'll hear. Sometimes a person's voice will over shadow the character and you'll only be able to "see" the actor while the animated character is talking, but that's not the case here. All the voices suit the characters perfectly and they act accordingly, meaning they're not just reading the lines, they're filling them with life too. Amazing cast and amazing work all around.

The action and fighting scenes are flat out, undeniably amazing!

There are really so many things I could talk about for this film. The comedy, the music, the art style. It's possibly better in every way over the original, and it's funny for me to think how little I cared about this franchise when it first came out. Yet here we are, and this is possibly going to be the best animated movie of the year and can proudly sit among the greats. If you still can, see this in the theater while you still can, it's just great. And if you haven't yet seen the first Kung Fu Panda, see that too, they're both great movies!