Kung Fu Panda

[Peven]

can't believe there isn't a thread for this already, but i just spent 10 minutes searching both the movie news and animation rooms to no avail.

prepare to watch one of the best kung fu fight scenes, or action scenes period, in a while.....


http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=45324

the more i see of this the more i am becoming a believer in the praise Mori has been heaping on it. looks fantastic, imo

[papalazeru]

Does look quite funny.

[Nordling]

Yeah, from what I've been hearing, it's a great buffer film to introduce kids to martial arts films. For all the cuteness of the animals, their fighting styles really are fairly accurate (at least, as accurate as they can be in these kinds of movies).

[King Psyz]

when my baby saw the trailer when I was watching it off the PSN, he just froze and was transfixed by the whole thing.

he also dances to the Indiana Jones theme...

[papalazeru]

Yeah, from what I've been hearing, it's a great buffer film to introduce kids to martial arts films. For all the cuteness of the animals, their fighting styles really are fairly accurate (at least, as accurate as they can be in these kinds of movies).

Hmmm...from what I've seen I'm not sure on the accuracy of that fighting style comment but it certainly is a great film to introduce kids to Marty Arty's.

Personally, I'd go for Drunken Master and possilbly Once upon a time in China.

Failing that, Kung fu hustle.

[Maui]

The kids dug the trailer before Speed Racer.

I'll be going to see this for sure!!

[slumber party69]

this does look pretty good,i`ll be seeing it.

And it was showing at cannes right??.

[Peven]

this does look pretty good,i`ll be seeing it.

And it was showing at cannes right??.

and got a very positive response from the report i read

[Maui]

I'm going to ba da bump this thread because it's in theatres tomorrow PEOPLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Can a mod change this thread to Movie Reviews? Pretty please!

This scored 86% on Rotten Tomatoes people!!! It's getting really good reviews.

I for one am really looking forward to this, as is Kaga, Peven and a few other cool cats.

I think this may be a masterpiece from our friends at Dreamworks!

For a change this time, I'm taking care of the neighbours 2 kids on Saturday ALL DAY! So I'm going to take them to see the movie. It will be fun to see their reaction and delight on their faces! 2 girls, one is 6 the other is 8. Good fun indeed!!!

[Nordling]

Yeah, I'm seeing this Saturday morning with my wife and daughter. should be fun.

[Maui]

Yeah, I'm seeing this Saturday morning with my wife and daughter. should be fun.

Cool! They've got some great voice talent on this one. The panda role is as if it's tailor made for Black.

For kicks, they are featuring some music from Kill Bill too, the Tomoyasu Hotei's "Battle Without Honor or Humanity."

I predict #1 at the box office, maybe 75 mil.

[WinslowLeach]

I want to see this too. It looks like alot of fun and if youre a longtime martial arts film fan, theres no way you can't get a kick out of it. They say the animation on this is magnificent.

[Maui]

I want to see this too. It looks like alot of fun and if youre a longtime martial arts film fan, theres no way you can't get a kick out of it. They say the animation on this is magnificent.

Yup, I think there will be alot of hidden stuff for us adults to pick up on - for the martial art film lovers - atleast I'm hoping so. Perhaps Chan doing some drunken master. hahaha

[justcheckin]

I wanna see this yay... can't wait.

[WinslowLeach]

I want to see this too. It looks like alot of fun and if youre a longtime martial arts film fan, theres no way you can't get a kick out of it. They say the animation on this is magnificent.

Yup, I think there will be alot of hidden stuff for us adults to pick up on - for the martial art film lovers - atleast I'm hoping so. Perhaps Chan doing some drunken master. hahaha

Thats another thing I heard, theres alot of references to older kung fu movies in it too, which is really cool!

[havocSchultz]

Yeah, I'm seeing this Saturday morning with my wife and daughter. should be fun.

Cool! They've got some great voice talent on this one. The panda role is as if it's tailor made for Black.

It was...
He said in an interview they had him in mind from the get-go...

And apparently he's been slowly doing the voice-work over the last 4 years or so...

[Maui]

Yeah, I'm seeing this Saturday morning with my wife and daughter. should be fun.

Cool! They've got some great voice talent on this one. The panda role is as if it's tailor made for Black.

It was...
He said in an interview they had him in mind from the get-go...

And apparently he's been slowly doing the voice-work over the last 4 years or so...

Ah, then I will prepare to be dazzled.

[so sorry]

Can a mod change this thread to Movie Reviews? Pretty please! ;)

Good call Maui... done and done!

[Maui]

Can a mod change this thread to Movie Reviews? Pretty please!

Good call Maui... done and done!

Thanks SS!

Get ready for some great reviews this weekend!

[havocSchultz]

Get ready for some great reviews this weekend!

Why...?
You're going to see Zohan...?

[Maui]

Get ready for some great reviews this weekend!

Why...?
You're going to see Zohan...?

Quite possibly may do a theatre sneak, Havoc, into the Zohan theatre. Yes, it looks incredibly silly but sometimes these movies have some good laughs.

See Will Ferrell.

[yorrick brown]

cool,can`t wait to hear if this is really good.

i really liked horton hears a who,so i`m looking forward to seeing if this is better.

[Maui]

cool,can`t wait to hear if this is really good.

i really liked horton hears a who,so i`m looking forward to seeing if this is better.

Horton was really good - atleast I thought so. Funny, great animation work by Blue Sky. They really did a fantastic job of creating the Dr. Suess vibe. Story was kinda all over the place - choppy, but still fun.

I think "Panda" is going to kick some major butt though - just be an overall fantastic film, both story and animation. Dreamworks studio looks like they have stepped up their game with this one. Super psyched to see it.

[Ribbons]

It looks kind of funny, but it's hard for me to trust DreamWorks's animated output because of how often we've been stung before. I don't know if I should blame Katzenberg, or what, but this is the THIRD time Angelina Jolie's done a voice for one of their films, which is three more than she should have. They try to dazzle us with star power and most of the time the film suffers for it. You'd think after 15 years, someone would be able to copy Pixar's formula successfully. When it comes to voice acting, it's not about stars.

[Zarles]

Dammit! The one time I'm really stoked to see a movie with my niece, she's already got a date with her friends to check it out next weekend. Guess it's creepy-old-guy-in-a-kids-movie for me. Again.

[Maui]

Ibut this is the THIRD time Angelina Jolie's done a voice for one of their films, which is three more than she should have.

I agree, she has an extremely flat delivery.

I think Wanda Sykes or Jada Pinkett Smith would have been better choices. Both of these gals have done voice work for animated films and are exceptional at it.

[Maui]

Dammit! The one time I'm really stoked to see a movie with my niece, she's already got a date with her friends to check it out next weekend. Guess it's creepy-old-guy-in-a-kids-movie for me. Again.

Awe, that's too bad. See if you lived in the bay area you could tag along with me and the 2 girls I'm babysitting.

[hackett]

i really like that Pixar films don't insist on having A list stars. Granted Hanks, Allen, and Wilson have put their voices into them if Dreamworks had done The Incredibles it probably would have been Lindsay Lohan, Brad Pitt, Shia LeBouf, and Julia Roberts... and Ratatouille would have had Adam Sandler as Linguini and Will Smith as Remy.

[DaleTremont]

Now with poll!

[Maui]

Excellent movie! Loved it. I'll write more later, but just wanted to let you all know this is definitely worth seeing.

Dreamworks has definitely raised the bar with this one. We went to the first showing and it was sold out! Got into the 2nd showing though. The theatre was absolutely packed.

Good fun!!!

[Zarles]

Dammit! The one time I'm really stoked to see a movie with my niece, she's already got a date with her friends to check it out next weekend. Guess it's creepy-old-guy-in-a-kids-movie for me. Again.

Awe, that's too bad. See if you lived in the bay area you could tag along with me and the 2 girls I'm babysitting.

That's right. Rub it in.

All in good time...

[Nordling]

I liked it quite a bit. I was surprised by Dustin Hoffman's character and the dumpling fight was hilarious and exciting.

An excellent family film.

[yorrick brown]

Excellent movie! Loved it. I'll write more later, but just wanted to let you all know this is definitely worth seeing.

Dreamworks has definitely raised the bar with this one. We went to the first showing and it was sold out! Got into the 2nd showing though. The theatre was absolutely packed.

Good fun!!!

thats cool to hear! .

so is it better than 'Horton' you think?.

[Maui]

I liked it quite a bit. I was surprised by Dustin Hoffman's character and the dumpling fight was hilarious and exciting.

An excellent family film.

You aren't going to get all mystical and kung fu'y on me?

The dumpling fight was a riot. I also thought the cartoon sequence at the very beginning, Po's dream, was rather clever. I thought it was rather amusing that Po's father was a goose who ran a noodle shop. hahahahah!

Excellent movie indeed!!! I might even go see it again, I liked it that much!!!

[Maui]

Excellent movie! Loved it. I'll write more later, but just wanted to let you all know this is definitely worth seeing.

Dreamworks has definitely raised the bar with this one. We went to the first showing and it was sold out! Got into the 2nd showing though. The theatre was absolutely packed.

Good fun!!!

thats cool to hear! .

so is it better than 'Horton' you think?.

Most definitely better than Horton. The story is rock solid. However there isn't anything quite as brilliantly funny as Horton going across that rickety old bridge and the mayor having his root canal at the same time. I laughed so hard during that scene my cheeks hurt.

[Peven]

saw this today and it lived up to my lofty expectations. it isn't transcendental but it accomplishes what it sets out to do and does it very well. easy on the eyes, some genuine laughs sprinkled throughout, and some really cool fight scenes. i saw this at a 2:10 p.m. matinee, at a theatre with 3 screens showing this, and the place was packed, with a lot of families with kids under 5, and they all seemed to love it. could overhear very positive buzz both from kids and adults while walking out afterwards.

[Maui]

The custodian at the theatre I went to was wearing a Karate suit then while we were waiting for the movie to begin, a Panda came into the theatre and shook hands with the kids and did some kung fu moves. Kinda funny. The kids got a kick out of it, as did I.

[Zarles]

Where did you go - Disneyland?

[Maui]

Where did you go - Disneyland?

NO!!! If you must know Century theatres in Pinole, at the Hilltop mall.

[Zarles]

Awesome. That's pretty impressive considering it's way out there. I'd expect that in the city, but Pinole? Someone did their homework.

[Peven]

Havoc's panda suit got held up in customs and it almost ruined his plans completely......

[Maui]

Legend tells of a legendary warrior whose kung fu skills were the stuff of legend.

hee hee

Just one of the funny lines out of Panda during the beginning animation sequence.

[Maui]

Awesome. That's pretty impressive considering it's way out there. I'd expect that in the city, but Pinole? Someone did their homework.

Yeah, who would have thunk in rinky dink Pinole, eh?

[Al Shut]

a Panda came into the theatre and shook hands with the kids and did some kung fu moves. The kids got a kick out of it, as did I.

The panda actually kicked the kids


Is it somehow possible to recognize Jack Black in this besides the voice. Cause I hate him.

[Maui]

a Panda came into the theatre and shook hands with the kids and did some kung fu moves. The kids got a kick out of it, as did I.

The panda actually kicked the kids

YES, he was escorted out of the theatre.

[LeFlambeur]

I would likely be launching into a rant right now about the strengths of contemporary children's cinema vs. the rest of the increasingly adolescent market, if the trailers that ran before Kung-Fu Panda hadn't set me straight. Wall-E aside, things look pretty abysmal for the kiddies too. There were some definite weak points, Madagascar returns, some Nickelodian kids set up a robot hotel for stray dogs, Star Wars returns as a cheapo cartoon to reify the B-movie form it once mythologized, but nothing could pepare me for the last trailer. An ominous voice-over from George Lopez about ancient indiginous civilizations leads to a parade set to an anthropomophic metronomic chant of the word 'chiuahua'. That one word was all the trailer would communicate. An orgy of canine kitsch, astonishing singlemindedness, spectacular retardation, barely sublimated ethnic stereotypes, beyond cliche hip-hop, digital recontextulization, and infantile inoccuousness, the trailer stood before me as an abomination before God and man. And, like a dog disregarding its own fecal matter, the audience ate it up. Expectations immeasurably lowered, Kung-Fu Panda began.

The great relief of Kung-Fu Panda is the welcome absense of any of the Mike Meyer's-like cultural references that have plagued the CGI cartoon genre (especially at Dreamworks) these past years. Working more from Pixar's good example, the makers of KFP play to the strengths of these movies, taking simple, archytypical stories and focusing on execution. I've never been fond of celebrity casting in animation (wasn't part of the attraction to get away from them?), but in KFP it works well in the central character, casting Jack Black as another legend-in-his-own-mind slacker, a casting type who's charm has shown surprising resiliance. Black's personality comes through well in the Panda without being too overbearing. The film displays a sharp eye for detail and a keen sense of comedic timing. The film starts out with a 2-D anime-ish power-fantasy narrated by the main character, and the shift into CGI is surprisingly fluid, the aesthetic carries over. Though the direction thoughout is well controlled, at times the film can't resist the excesses of CGI, and the "camera" swoops and cranes around so far that the visual perspective loses the human touch. Ultimately the tale is another Kung-Fu sort about the perils of unchecked ambition. The fight scenes are also inventive, literalizing the animal styles, and the Panda's food based training sequences are clever enough to make Yuen-Woo Ping smile.

[Maui]

The fight scenes are also inventive, literalizing the animal styles, and the Panda's food based training sequences are clever enough to make Yuen-Woo Ping smile.

You got that right. The dumpling training was very inventive. Even the fight at the end with Tai Long when Po uses the stilts like chopsticks with the turned over woks.

I found even the expressions in their eyes, really told alot. Shifu's rolling of eyes, facial expressions, as well as Po's. I know alot of people are down on Dreamworks because they have continually thrown animated flick at us, one after another, but I really feel they have stepped up their game with KFP and it truly shows. It's precise! Even the simplest things like pink cherry blossom leaves blowing off in the breeze, it's exact, stunning and beautifully done.

[LeFlambeur]

Absolutely. I was frequently impressed by the infitismal attention to detail in the animation, and I don't normally concern myself with that sort of thing. Until this, I had written Dreamworks off as an artistic force in animation. Hell I outright despised it. But this definately represents a step in the right direction. Lets just pray there isn't another Shrek.

[Keepcoolbutcare]

yes, but does anyone say "This is Po, my long time companda?"

[Bob Samonkey]

yes, but does anyone say "This is Po, my long time companda?"

I do...all the time