Kung Fu Panda 3: A Hilarious Comedy for Kids, Less So as an Action Film
The third installment in the Kung Fu Panda saga delivers a weaker action experience but shines as a delightful children’s comedy.
Long ago, the warrior Kai was Master Oogway’s closest comrade and sworn brother. However, when Kai sought to harness kung fu magic to conquer all of China, Oogway defeated him and banished him to the spirit realm. Over centuries in this ghostly dimension, Kai learned to steal the energy of kung fu masters, turning them into his silent slaves. When Oogway himself transitioned to the spirit world, Kai seized his energy and used it to return to China. Now, only one martial arts master stands in his way: Po, the panda, the prophesied “Dragon Warrior.” As Kai advances towards his target, Po discovers his biological father and visits a secret panda village, finally finding himself among his own kind.
In long-running fantasy martial arts franchises, there almost inevitably comes a point when the main characters become so incredibly powerful that, during battles, they stand a considerable distance apart and exchange magical super-moves that obliterate everything in their path, yet fail to harm their equally formidable opponents. These tedious confrontations drag on until one of the heroes remembers an ultra-super-powerful move that finally penetrates the enemy’s previously impenetrable defense.
The film was partially animated in China, at the Shanghai-based Oriental DreamWorks studio, a joint venture between DreamWorks Animation and Chinese investors.
DreamWorks Animation’s “Kung Fu Panda” series reached this “point of no return” by the end of the second film, where the final battle devolved into the villain firing cannons at Po, who, having just mastered a super-move perfect for the situation, deflected the cannonballs back. While technically an epic scene, it paled in comparison to the superbly choreographed “contact” fights from the first “Kung Fu Panda.” Remember the scene where the villain Tai Lung battles Po’s five fellow students on a rope bridge? How much more complex, engaging, and unpredictable it was than Po’s triumph in “Kung Fu Panda 2”!
The filmmakers had hoped that Rebel Wilson would voice the panda Mei Mei. However, when negotiations with Wilson fell through, Kate Hudson took on the role.
The Point of No Return
The “point of no return” is so named because the series can no longer revert to its earlier form. “Kung Fu Panda 3” vividly demonstrates this. Its two main battles – between Kai and Oogway, and between Kai and Po – follow the same pattern as the final battle in “Kung Fu Panda 2.” The characters exchange super-moves until one of them uses a super-super-move. It looks beautiful (especially when performed by the graceful Master Oogway), but it’s utterly uninteresting. A close-quarters fight, using realistic movements and adhering to the laws of gravity, would have been far more dramatic. However, “Kung Fu Panda” has already passed that stage.
A Comedy for the Whole Family
Fortunately, this doesn’t mean the new installment can be safely ignored. On the contrary, it deserves attention – especially if you attend animated films with young children. Because “Kung Fu Panda 3” is a weak action film, but a hilarious children’s comedy. While Po was almost the sole constant source of humor in the previous two films, in the third, he finds himself surrounded by an entire village of pandas, all of whom are nearly as funny as the kung fu panda himself. From toddlers to the elderly. We won’t list the specific reasons why the pandas are funny, so as not to spoil the surprises prepared by the animators, but trust us – your child will have a great time. And you’ll find plenty to laugh at too.
Of course, the film includes serious, grandiose scenes, as it is formally an action movie. But the film never seems to stray more than a minute away from a joke or gag, and even its dramatic and action-packed segments contain amusing moments. Apparently, the realization that it couldn’t compete with the first film in terms of action led DreamWorks Animation to remember that it has always been primarily a creator of animated comedies. And that’s exactly the kind of film DWA has released.
It’s certainly a shame that “Kung Fu Panda” has stopped balancing fights and humor. But it’s still a children’s series, not a teen one. And perhaps it’s better for young children to laugh at the antics of funny “fluffballs” than to watch animals seriously beat each other up in the style of Jet Li and Sammo Hung.