Monday, December 08, 2008

Kung Fu Panda (2008)

My husband and I went on a rare date while this movie was in the theater, and we did something even more rare—we forked over $8 a ticket to see it. It was worth it.

Jack Black stars as the voice of Po, a huge panda who works in his father’s noodle house. Every night, he dreams of being a kung fu master, just like his heroes, the Furious Five. But every morning, he wakes up to reality—he’s clumsy, he’s overweight, and his father expects him to take over the family noodle business.

Meanwhile, at the Jade Palace, home of the kung fu masters, Master Oogway has a vision. Tai Lung, a former kung fu student who turned to the dark side (sorry, wrong movie) will return. He laid waste to the village years before when he was not chosen to be the Dragon Warrior, the hero of the people. Master Oogway senses it’s only a matter of time before Tai Lung comes back to seek revenge. It seems crazy—Tai Lung is in prison, guarded by a thousand soldiers. But Master Oogway has never been wrong before.

A Dragon Warrior must be chosen to protect the people from this threat. A competition is held to select that warrior, and Po desperately wants to go and see who will be chosen. When the day arrives, Master Oogway chooses Po, to the astonishment and dismay of all.

Master Shifu begins Po’s training. Shifu has no confidence in Po whatsoever, but he doesn’t count on Po’s unflagging enthusiasm. In the end, we learn that what you are on the outside has nothing to do with the strength of your heart or the purity of your character.

This movie is rated PG for scenes of peril. It’s less frightening on the small screen than it was in the theater, but I do encourage you to consider the needs of your more sensitive viewers. Tai Lung isn’t a nice kitty. That said, the humor is fabulous and you’ll come away feeling inspired and uplifted. We're definitely going to add a copy to our home collection.

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5 comments:

Danyelle Ferguson said...

My kids LOVED this movie. It's one of the only movies we've taken our son with autism to see in the theaters. He was so engrossed in it and just laughed and laughed. It was such an awesome family activity.

Lee Ann Setzer said...

I loved this show, too, and everyone looks at me kinda funny when I rave about it. Glad to find another fan!

Anna said...

I only watched bits and pieces of this movie. My sister rented this and the kids watched it with her over Thanksgiving though, and they liked it pretty good. My brothers friend (he's 30) was laughing hard during parts. Sounds like a movie both kids and adults can enjoy.

My mother bought this because the kids liked it so much. It's definately on my list of movies to watch.

G. Parker said...

Oh yeah...we LOVE this movie! lol. We bought it as soon as it hit the shelves. I think it's the only Jack Black movie I like.

Cindy Beck, author said...

Tristi,
Sounds like a cute movie, especially if it has humor.

Thanks for the review!

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