Today’s quick review: Kung Fu Panda 2. When Lord Shen (Gary Oldman) unleashes his cannons on China, Master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman) sends Po (Jack Black) and the Furious Five (Angelina Jolie, Lucy Liu, David Cross, Seth Rogen, and Jackie Chan) to stop him. But Po faces an inner battle when he learns that Shen was the one who killed his birth parents.
Kung Fu Panda 2 is a family animated martial arts action comedy. The story follows Po and the Furious Five on a new adventure as they square off against a warlord with an army of wolves and a fearsome new piece of technology: the cannon. Kung Fu Panda 2 upholds the high standard of quality set by the first film. Impressive fight scenes, attentive cinematography, and a smattering of light humor make it a thoroughly fun watch.
Like its predecessor, Kung Fu Panda 2 strikes just the right balance of action and comedy. The fights are as sprawling and creative as ever, this time with a full urban environment for Po and the Furious Five to play with. Shen’s agile, blade-oriented style marks a nice contrast to the brute force of Tai Lung from the first movie, while his firework-inspired cannons gives the action a strong visual hook.
The comedy remains a major draw without being too distracting. Po is still as clumsy as he was before, but his training lets him fight like a warrior when he has to. His blunders add some fruitful chaos to the action scenes, and a large part of the enjoyment is seeing how the Furious Five roll with Po’s fumbling. The humor also allows the movie to dial down the tension whenever it needs to, keeping it from becoming overly serious.
As far as story goes, Kung Fu Panda 2 is a slight step down from the first film. Where the original Kung Fu Panda was an underdog story with a clear dramatic arc, Kung Fu Panda 2 has to work harder to establish its drama and suffers from a more limited emotional range. To its credit, the movie makes it work. The story feels like a natural continuation of the first film’s, and it has some solid payoff for anyone invested in the characters.
Overall, Kung Fu Panda 2 is a solidly constructed action comedy that delivers the same combination of spectacular fights, light humor, and heartfelt story as the first film. It is not without its faults, and not everyone will appreciate its heavy focus on action. But for most viewers, Kung Fu Panda 2 is a worthy sequel that is well worth a watch.
For a martial arts comedy with a loosely similar plot, try Shanghai Knights. for a more dramatic movie about a fight for the future of martial arts, try Ip Man or Ip Man 2.
[7.2 out of 10 on IMDB](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1302011/). I give it a 7.0 for excellent action backed by a well-scoped story.