What Do The Critics Say?

"Kung Fu Panda stars a bunch of cute, highly-merchandisable creatures, but the amount of genuine kung fu movie love that permeates the film shines through to anyone who is a fan of top-notch animated filmmaking, as well as the martial arts genre." Diva Velez MIGHTY GANESHA "Everything about Kung Fu Panda is a little better, a little sharper, a little funnier than the animated run of the mill. It's one of the few comedies of 2008 that knows what it's doing." Michael Phillips CHICAGO TRIBUNE "Fast, light, and easy-to-swallow, an ideal repast for families to enjoy at the multiplex." John P McCarthy REELTALK MOVIEREVIEWS "Jack Black really poured himself completely into this role and the movie turns out to be extremely funny and action packed." Kevin McCarthy CBS RADIO "By far the most visually appealing film yet released by DreamWorks Animation. Kung Fu Panda is easily the best Jack Black film since School of Rock." Tim Brayton ANTAGONY & ECSTASY "The directors find the right mixture of slapstick, satire, and affection." Rob Vaux FLIPSIDE MOVIE EMPORIUM "Screenwriters Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger tailor the clever dialog to Black's verbal idiosyncrasies while still managing to create a distinctive character. The computer animation itself is breathtaking - from the individual hairs on an angry snow leopard to the panoramic views of China. Imaginatively done, full of peril, surprise and even humor." Cathy Jakicic MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL

"Big, cuddly Jack Black voices big, cuddly Po, the bear who dreams of kung fu glory. The kung fu scenes overflow with crisp, thrilling and funny moments that whiz by in the 88-minute run time." Nancy Churnin DALLAS MORNING NEWS "Kung Fu Panda gets a big kick from the vocal trio of Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman and Ian McShane." Christian Toto WASHINGTON TIMES "Both a surprisingly good kung fu movie and a solid family flick… The story is sweeter and shows more heart than you might think." Steven D Greydanus DECENT FILM GUIDES "This is one kid's movie where the grownups shouldn't have to fight over who has to take the children. Instead, everyone should get in on the fun." Daniel M Kimmel WORCESTER TELGRAM & GAZETTE "A snappy, amusingly witty family comedy. Kids will undoubtedly love the film, while adults won't feel talked down to." Dustin Putman THEMOVIEBOY "Oh heck, this is my favorite film of the year so far -- A ! Action, depth, fun, comedy, profound messages and it's visually gorgeous." Ross Anthony HOLLYWOOD REPORT CARD "Beautifully animated, the celebrity voice performances are terrific, and the action sequences negotiate the fine line between being physically convincing and becoming too intense for the young children who are the film's primary audience." Maitland McDonagh TV GUIDE'S MOVIE GUIDE

The Inside Story Whether it's an ogre trying to regain what is rightfully his or a group of displaced zoo animals finding their way back home, audiences of all ages love to root for the underdog. Anyone who has ever struggled against the odds empathizes with the heroes in these entertaining and morally resonant tales. So how about a panda who dreams of becoming a kung fu master? That's right, a plump, drowsy, huggable black-and-white bear who has one, and only one, aspiration in life: to become an expert in a martial art that relies on agility, mental prowess and lightning-fast reflexes. It's a formidable, some would say foolhardy, quest. But isn't that what heroism is all about? When directors John Stevenson and Mark Osborne and producer Melissa Cobb ("December" & "Ever After") were presented with this unlikely storyline, they immediately responded. The obstacle strewn journey of Po, the “Kung Fu Panda,” touched a chord in each of them. Director John Stevenson begins, "We're all parents, you know? I have two daughters and Mark and Melissa have kids. We wanted the film to have something that our kids could take away. 'Be your own hero', which means don't look outside of yourself for the answer. Don't expect someone else to make things right. You are empowered to achieve anything you want, if you set your mind to it. Be the best that you can be." "It was important to all of us, from the start," says Osborne, "that 'Kung Fu Panda' would have a theme, a positive message that we really believed in. We wanted it to be a fun experience loaded with comedy and great action. But we also wanted there to be a takeaway that we all believed was a good one." "We were really aiming to craft a film that had a timelessness to it; while the story is set in our version of ancient China, the tale doesn't only apply to those characters at that time. The greatest stories are timeless. And we clearly wanted ours to have that quality," Stevenson notes, "a classic hero's journey." So how did Stevenson become a part of the production. "I was directing a TV show at DreamWorks called "Father of the Pride". While I was prepping the season finale, I was asked if I wanted to work on a project called 'Kung Fu Panda'. So, I went to look it over. I loved kung fu movies from when I was growing up in the seventies, as well as the 'Kung Fu' television show with David Carradine. I thought it would be an interesting challenge." Stevenson also revealed he was looking for an alternative to some of the more formulaic 'talking animal' movies of recent years. Co-director Mark Osborne made his way on to the project through his Academy Award ® nominated stop-motion short film "More", which opened doors for the aspiring auteur. "One of the doors that opened was at DreamWorks. I came in here as a director looking for a project and worked in development for a few years, making notes on projects and developing stories they weren't sure what to do with. Then, I heard about 'Kung Fu Panda'. And I thought it was a great concept." "I wrote some notes on the project and, after a while, they brought me in when they began to seriously shape the project. I saw it as a thrilling opportunity to jump into feature filmmaking and explore working with CG and a larger crew for the first time." The journey to make the hoped for timeless fable of "Kung Fu Panda" resembled somewhat the tale of the panda at the centre of it all. The film had spent years in development, hardly piquing anyone's interest. Enter two talented writers, Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger. "Originally, what they had was great stuff. We just came on for a week to story consult, to help shape it. So, we looked at what they had and made some suggestions. That week became a month, and that month became three months, which became another nineteen months," says Aibel. "We just got so involved in the process." Berger recalls: "We were brought in to cut back the forest, to find the heart of the movie they were always aiming to make. But with such a beautiful world and fun characters, stuff had naturally grown out of that, the central story had gotten covered up. So we were there to help focus and tell the story everyone wanted told." "Jonathan and Glenn were a tremendous addition to the crew. They helped us to refine the story, make it really solid, and helped us find the characters and the tone of the project. They had a deep understanding of the characters early on and dove into the project with abandon," Cobb asserts. "We knew that the film could be special. Throughout its development, we were frequently amazed by the talent and tenacity of the filmmakers in their pursuit of making 'Kung Fu Panda'. In a nutshell, we always believed in the film and in the filmmakers behind it," Bill Damaschke ("The Road to El Dorado", "Shark Tale" & "Over The Hedge") said. The production team also struck gold when voicing Po. Head of Character Animation Dan Wagner ("Madagascar", "The Prince of Egypt" & "Space Jam") took a few sound bites of Jack Black's animated Po. The marriage was an unqualified success. When it comes to motion pictures, both animated and live-action, there is little doubt about Jack Black's talent. He's a gifted actor with enormous heart and he's funny, really funny. Black, who had previously voiced on "Ice Age" and "Shark Tale", and has enjoyed a string of hit films such as "School of Rock", "The Holiday", "King Kong" and "Be Kind Rewind", is the perfect voice for Po. "There is an innate sweetness and goodness about Jack that we really wanted to show through Po, a gentle, good-hearted innocent soul, someone who's funny, appealing and charming, and we wanted the character to have all those qualities. It's hard to imagine anybody more like Po than Jack," Osborne says. "Jack has brought so much of himself to the character that it's helped us create not only a believable world, but a character that's really real," Stevenson adds. "Genuine and vulnerable, it all comes directly from Jack and is inspired by his performance." "Kung fu has always fascinated me. The graceful gymnastics of a martial arts master are a thrill to behold. When I was a kid, I took karate and judo classes. It was fun and good for my muscles. I even won a trophy in a judo tournament," Black revealed, "but I must confess I outweighed the competition by a good twenty pounds." Black was full of praise for his two directors. "Mark is kind of the arty one. He's got arty roots, having gone to art school, he's really well versed in; arty things. And John is really great with coming in and helping me focus on the emotional aspects of the story. He's got mad chops when it comes to envisioning animal behavior, animal voices and characters. He's got a lot of experience. And they both have great brains and great hearts and, together, they make a great team." Po's master instructor in 'Kung Fu Panda' is Shifu. He is not only short in stature, but also short on patience." To bring their two-foot-tall kung fu master to life, the filmmakers approached one of cinema's finest actors, two-time Oscar ® winner Dustin Hoffman ("Rain Man" 1989 & "Kramer vs Kramer" 1980). "Shifu is actually our most emotionally complex character in the movie," says Stevenson. "He has the biggest back story and probably the biggest emotional arc, because he's sort of tormented by ghosts from the past. We knew Shifu was going to be a difficult and complex character, and it was going to require a really great actor to bring him to life." What was it that attracted Hoffman, who voiced the character Tucker in "Racing Stripes" to the role? "I liked the fact that they were looking at a collaborative way of creating Shifu," the four time BAFTA winner ("The Graduate", "Midnight Cowboy", "John and Mary" & "Tootsie") Hoffman said. "They would ask 'How do you like the face?' Well, I didn't know much about animation; they put a video camera on you when you're recording and they watch your gestures, and then construct the character and include little bits of your idiosyncrasies and gestures. I thought that was interesting. I made a couple of suggestions, because I'm very nose sensitive. Why, I don't know. I wanted a little nose correction. I told them I demanded a nose change. I was just looking for a cheap joke." Did Hoffman get his wish? It seems not. "They opened up the mouth and widened the teeth. I think that was their idea." "Shifu is the great master of kung fu, and Dustin Hoffman is the great master of acting," says Black, who recalls, "I remember, in high school, watching the video of his production of "Death of a Salesman". I watched it tons of times and I was just blown away by him." Po's idols, the Furious Five, are all students of Shifu. They are superstars in the kung fu world, and Po's heroes. Tigress is voiced by Oscar ® winner Angelina Jolie ("Girl, Interrupted"). "Directing Angelina Jolie is pretty surreal," says Osbourne. "I mean, she's amazing. You have to kind of look away, you know?" Jolie had voiced Lola for DreamWorks in "Shark Tale", which she thoroughly enjoyed. "I just had such a good experience. It was so much fun to do, not just because I have children. This film was especially interesting to me because it was a sort of return to the classics." While Tigress is all business, the character of Monkey, voiced by Jackie Chan, is a bit of a cut-up. "We had to have Jackie Chan in our movie, Cobb said. "He was thrilled to see an American animation studio doing a movie about kung fu and he sensed the opportunity to really broaden the audience for kung fu around the world." "I use comedy together with my kung fu. I think it really fits me. And for all these years, jumping around and fighting, I'm just like Monkey," the two time Golden Horse Award (1992 & '93) winner offered. Viper is voiced by two time Screen Actors Guild Award winner, Lucy Liu ("Ally McBeal" 1999 & "Chicago" 2003), who admits to being a big kid at heart, having grown up watching and loving cartoons. "It takes you to a place inside yourself that is childlike, in which these characters become real people, part of your real life." Crane is voiced by "Alvin and the Chipmunks" bad guy, David Cross ("Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" & "Ghost World"). "Actors usually talk about seeing bits of themselves in their characters, but I have to be honest with you, I've never once thought of myself as a bird with skinny legs. An eagle, perhaps, or even an emu, but never a crane. And just for the record, I have great legs." Mantis, voiced by Seth Rogen, is one tightly-wound insect. "I've always wanted to play a mantis, so I thought it was oddly coincidental that they had called. And I was literally just talking to someone that day, saying, 'You know, I never played a mantis.' And then the phone rang and it was kismet, I guess," says Rogen ("Horton Hears a Who!" & "Shrek 3"). Finally, there is the 'baddie', Tai Lung, a most dangerous of adversary who is physically imposing, ruthless, manically driven, brilliant and just this side of imbalanced. Tai Lung is voiced by 2005 Golden Globe winner, Ian McShane. Stevenson notes: "Ian can go from zero to sixty in like two and a half seconds. In life, he comes in as the nicest guy in the world. And then, when he becomes Tai Lung, he'll just get behind the microphone and roar and make the hairs on the back of your neck stand straight up. He's an amazing actor to watch." And how does McShane see his character? "He believes he should've been the Dragon Warrior. He's been denied it for twenty years, because pride comes before a fall, and that's Tai Lung's big problem: pride. He's a complex character and he physically looks very good in the film. I always enjoy playing a character that's full of contradictions like Tai Lung - he's not really a villain. I mean, I'd rather I didn't have to do any of the wonderful fighting that the characters do in this movie. I'd love to say that I could do that in real life. I'm just glad to supply the grunts and the groans." Synopsis

Enthusiastic, big and a little clumsy, Po is the biggest fan of Kung Fu around, which doesn't exactly come in handy while working every day in his family's noodle shop. At night he dreams of becoming the next great Kung Fu Master. Unexpectedly chosen to fulfill an ancient prophecy, Po's dreams become reality when he joins the world of Kung Fu and studies alongside his idols, the legendary Furious Five, Tigress, Crane, Mantis, Viper and Monkey, under the leadership of their guru, Master Shifu. But before they know it, the vengeful and treacherous snow leopard Tai Lung is headed their way, and it's up to Po to defend everyone from the oncoming threat. Can he turn his dreams of becoming a Kung Fu master into reality? Po puts his heart, and his girth, into the task. The unlikely hero ultimately finds that his greatest weaknesses turn out to be his greatest strengths in the fight against evil.

The Verdict "A stunningly visual film that will charm the socks off its audiences. Colorful, exciting, delightful, highly appealing; there just aren't enough superlatives to describe "Kung Fu Panda" the latest feature presentation from Dreamworks Animation. The star of the film is Po, a loveable, chubby Panda, who dreams of becoming the most famous Dragon Fighter in all of China. Po is voiced by the inimitable Jack Black, who continues to win audiences over. The animated Panda and the voice of Black are union made in heaven. In fact, all the characters and their voices are superb. And it doesn't stop there. The background images are brilliant and highly colorful. "Kung Fu Panda" is not just for kids. Adults would be wise to not dismiss the film as one which is solely aimed at young children. That would be tragic and one which, if you miss seeing it on the bigscreen, could result in you not only denying yourself a highly rewarding experience, but later-on, giving yourself a good kick in the backside because of 'missed opportunity'. Highly commended. Will delight cinemagoers of all ages. 4 1/2 STARS." Crew Bytes "KUNG FU PANDA" was .......
directed by Mark Osborne ["Greener", "More" and "Dropping Out"] and John Stevenson ["James and the Giant Peach", "Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron" and "Madagascar"]; art direction by Yong Duk Jhun ["The Prince of Egypt", "The Road To Eldorado", "Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron" and "Shark Tale"]; production design by Raymond Zibach ["Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas"]; edited by Clare Knight ["Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron" and "Madagascar"]; cinematography by Yong Duk Jhun ["Over the Hedge"]; original music by ELEVEN time BMI Film Music Award winner Hans Zimmer ["Rain Man", "Driving Miss Daisy" and "As Good as It Gets"] and EIGHT time ASCAP Award winner John Powell ["Robots", "Ice Age: The Meltdown", "Happy Feet" and "Horton Hears a Who!"]. Who's Who?

Jack Black James Hong Dustin Hoffman Angelina Jolie Ian McShane Jackie Chan Seth Rogen Lucy Liu David Cross Randall Duk Kim Dan Fogler Michael Clarke Duncan Wayne Knight Kyle Gass JR Reed Laura Kightlinger Stephen Kearin Mark Osborne John Stephenson Jeremy Shipp Kent Osborne Melissa Cobb Emily Robison Stephanie Harvey Tanya Haden Riley Osborne

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Po Mr Ping Shifu Tigress Tai Lung Monkey Mantis Viper Crane Oogway Zeng Commander Vachir Gang Boss KG Shaw JR Shaw Awed Ninja Gong Pig/Grateful Bunny Pig Patron Rhino Guard Blind Gator Pig Fan Bunny Mom Bunny Fan # 1 Bunny Fan #2 Smitten Bunny Baby Tai Lung

Run Time 92 minutes Rated PG [AUST] Copyright ©2008 - Dreamworks Animation - All Rights Reserved ©2008 All Rights Reserved The Movie Pages - Protected by Australian, International, Copyright & Trademark Laws.