Anyone notice a similar arc in most, if not all, of Jack Black’s movies?
At first, he’s enjoyably daffy. By mid-film you want to strangle his character. Then, slowly, his manic energy wins you over despite your steeliest defenses.
I ran through those emotions in the new kiddie flick “Kung Fu Panda,” for which Black provides the main character’s voice.
“Panda” stars Black as a roley-poly panda named Po who dreams of becoming a kung fu master while slinging noodles for his father’s restaurant.
A series of clumsily staged events forces Po to accept a monumental challenge - to become the Dragon Warrior and defend his village against the evil Tai Lung (Ian McShane, oozing even more menace than he did on “Deadwood”).It’s up to a yoda-like kung fu master named Shifu (Dustin Hoffman, another casting coup) to turn Po into a lean, or at least leaner, fighting machine.
The jokes in “Kung Fu Panda” rarely rise above the obvious, and the action is so frenetic it’s hard to follow, let alone get invested in. But it’s the sweet bond forged between Po and Shifu that seals the deal. Their mentor-pupil relationship feels real, or at least as real as any animated film can conjure.
After seeing the new animated film “Kung Fu Panda” one thought came to mind. Nobody does it like Pixar. Still. That doesn’t mean movies like “Panda” aren’t a hyper kinetic kick for the kiddies. And for the kid in all of us.
(Photo: Jack Black voices Po the Panda in “Kung Fu Panda”)
Related posts:
I'm an award-winning journalist and film critic with more than a decade of experience in newspapers, magazines and the Web. I'm a member of both the Washington, DC Area Film Critics Association and the Denver Film Critics Society.
{ 0 comments… add one now }