Kung Fu Panda 2

Dir: Jennifer Yuh Nelson

2011

****

 Kung Fu Panda 2 is better than the first film, something that never happens with animated films of this ilk (okay, apart from Toy Story). That said, they do try to cram in a little too much in such a small space of time and the story is rather familiar in many respects but I would argue that it is typical of the Kung Fu genre. The humour, charm and beautiful animation more than make up for it anyway. The voice actors are clearly paid by the hour as each big name actor has approximately three lines each maximum, apart from the rather impressive additions of Gary Oldman, Michelle Yeoh and Danny McBride. To bag another big name such as Gary Oldman proves the worth of the franchise somewhat, after the success of the first film. It's clearly not only I that thought the squeal was better, as the Academy nominated Kung Fu Panda 2 as one of the best animated films at the 84th Academy awards. It didn't win but it absolutely deserved to be nominated. There is a fluidity in the story, leaving of where the last film ended, we believe what has happened in the meantime without the original story going back on itself as can often be the case. Po is still on a journey of self-discovery and is still as lovable as he was before he became a Kung Fu master. The development of the characters is unusually good for an animated film, we learn more about the characters as they grow, rather than the film back-tracking. It's a seamless transition, as if the squeal was written at the same time as the first, so I applaud the script-writers. The fact that the great Charlie Kaufman was consulted on the story and Guillermo del Toro was executive producer. The darker themes are extremely reminiscent of the great Spanish director and the film clearly benefits from his involvement. Much like I said with the first instalment, Kung Fu Panda understands the Kung Fu genre and that is why it works so well.