Kung Fu Panda (www.the-usher.com)

"The Panda is the Dragon Master?"

Po (Black) dreams of being the ultimate kung fu warrior, feared by his enemies but adored by the people, just like his heroes the Furious Five. The problem is that Po is an overweight and slightly lazy panda, who works in his father's noodle store which is a long way from the Jade Palace overlooking the Valley of Peace, where the five train to become the Dragon Warrior, the fabled warrior who would weld ultimate power. But on the day that Master Oogway (Duk Kim) is to decide which of the five, Tigress (Jolie), Crane (Cross), Mantis (Rogen), Viper (Liu) or Monkey (Chan) would be crowned the Dragon Warrior and be given the dragon scroll of power, it is Po that the old master picks, much to the disappoint of the Furious Five's master Shifu (Hoffman).

As Pixar continue to produce profound and meaningful animated movies, DreamWorks Animation continues to produce the all-star comedies but can 'Kung Fu Panda' change the perception of the studio?

When it comes to producing award winning, groundbreaking animated features Pixar rules the roost but their main rival in the animation stakes DreamWorks have had many hits of their own. Using the formula of getting big star names to provide the voices for comedy adventures such as 'Over the Hedge', 'Madagascar' and the ultra-successful 'Shrek' franchise. While they might not have had the substance of the Pixar films, they certainly knew how to entertain an audience and 'Kung Fu Panda' continues that trend, and how.

The story is simple but it is one that will resonate with children and all those people who have quite given up on been a hero. Here we have Po, a giant panda who dreams of becoming a kung-fu master but that dream just might come true when Master Oogway announces that the mythical Dragon Warrior is Po and it is he that will weald the ultimate power given by the dragon scroll. The problem is that while Po might dream of been a kung-fu master, he is far from it and his heroes, the Furious Five, of which one of them expected to be announced as the Dragon Warrior, and their master Shifu now have to train him to fulfil his destiny. The problem is that the Dragon Warrior is going to be needed because the most feared warrior Tai Lung has escaped from this maximum-security prison and is heading to the temple to clam the dragon scroll for himself. Of course this is a story that is filled with kung-fu action but it is the comedy of seeing an extremely overweight panda learning to become a martial arts master that makes this movie so good.

The character design is exceptional but it is the vocal performances by the all-star cast that bring the characters to life. Finally, for the most part, we have big name actors and actresses providing vocal performances to create a character and not just animated versions of themselves. It is the sign of a good animated film when you have to wait until the end credits to discover that Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Ian McShane, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, David Cross, Randall Duk Kim, Michael Clarke Duncan and Jackie Chan provided the voices for Shifu, Tigress, Tai Lung, Mantis, Viper, Crane, Commander Vachir and Monkey. The same can't be said for Jack Black as Po, as this is just a representation of herself but this doesn't distract from the fact that this is still a fun character.

'Kung Fu Panda' is an exceptional piece of family entertainment. Mixing martial arts action with laugh out loud comedy, this is a movie that all of the family can enjoy, whatever your age. With fantastic animation and characters that will become firm favourites, this should be the start of another great franchise for DreamWorks.

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in Widescreen 1.85:1 Anamorphic with a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, the transfer is good.

BONUS FEATURES (Single Disc Version)

Filmmaker's Commentary
Unfortunately, this was not available on this review copy.

Meet the Cast (13.15 mins)
Directors Mark Osbourne and John Stevenson and stars Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Ian McShane, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, David Cross, Randall Duk Kim, Michael Clarke Duncan and Jackie Chan talk about the characters of 'Kung Fu Panda'.

Pushing the Boundaries (7.05 mins)
Directors Mark Osbourne and John Stevenson and artistic supervisor Nathan Loofbourrow talk about the problems associated with creating characters not only with fur and clothes but then making them do martial arts.

Conversation International: Help save Wild Pandas (1.52 mins)
Jack Black tells you how you can get involved with the conservation efforts to save the wild giant pandas.

Dragon Warrior Training Academy
Play the interactive game that challenges you to five quests to become the dragon warrior

DreamWorks Animation Video Jukebox
View songs from DreamWorks hits like 'Bee Movie', 'Madagascar' and the 'Shrek' movies

Previews
Trailers for 'Bee Movie', 'Shrek the Halls', 'Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa', 'Monsters vs. Aliens' and 'Secrets of the Furious Five'

OVERALL

The Single-Disc version of 'Kung Fu Panda' is still filled with some good featurettes and a commentary. There is much to enjoy here but if you are a real fan of the film, you need to invest in the two disc or Blu-Ray version of the movie.

DVD

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2008