DreamWorks Animation’s “Kung Fu Panda,” franchise began when they released the first Kung Fu Panda movie in 2008. It earned them a Best Animated Feature Oscar. Two feature sequels followed, Kung Fu Panda 2 (2011) (which also earned a Best Animated Feature Oscar) and Kung Fu Panda (2016), along with four short films, three television series and a holiday themed special, Kung Fu Panda Holiday (2010). Throughout the franchise, Jack Black voiced the clumsy but brave, Po, in the feature films, and on the short-lived series Kung Fu Panda: The Dragon Knight (2022-2023). After a brief hiatus, Black returned to voicing Po on the big screen in Kung Fu Panda 4 released on March 8th, 2024. Here are my thoughts:
In “version 4,” Po has now officially become a Kung Fu Master and was elected by his friends and family as the Spiritual Leader of the Valley of Peace. He discovers, however, that each of the villains he defeated in the previous “Kung Fu Panda” movies have mysteriously resurrected from the “Spiritual Realm,” and he must figure out how to defeat them all—again…and this time simultaneously. In doing so, he becomes a mentor to a new “Dragon Warrior,” the title that he earned in the first film.
When the first “Kung Fu Panda,” film was released the story of an anthropomorphized Panda Bear who learns Kung Fu was a unique mash-up of a soft and cute Panda Bear as a Martial Arts Champion. Throughout this series, Po has matured in his Kung Fu skills, but he has never lost his sense of humor, making him an endearing character to fans. This time around, seeing Po become a mentor for the first time in his life adds to the entertainment very well.
Along with Black, “Kung Fu Panda 4,” reunites the voice cast of Oscar-Winner Dustin Hoffman, James Hong, Ian McShane, and Oscar-Nominee Bryan Cranston along with the additions of Awkwafina, Oscar-Winner Viola Davis and Oscar-Winner Ke Huy Quan. The film is co-directed by Stephanie Stine, who makes her feature film directorial debut, and Mike Mitchell, who previously directed Shrek Forever After (2010) at DreamWorks. (Mitchell also executive produced the movie.) The film was co-scored by Steve Mazzaro and Oscar-Winner Hans Zimmer, who also scored DreamWorks’s The Prince of Egypt (1998) with Stephen Schwartz.
The “Kung Fu Panda,” franchise can now be compared to the “Shrek,” and “Toy Story,” franchise in the sense that each franchise consists of four feature films. (The “Despicable Me” franchise will join those ranks later this year with Despicable Me 4 scheduled to be released July 5, 2024.) Whether or not it will tie with “Ice Age,” franchise, which consists of six feature films, remains to be seen. “Kung Fu Panda 4” could potentially be considered a standalone/spin-off movie, rather than a sequel, with the additions of all the new characters. And while Po’s friends from the original trilogy, “The Furious Five,” make cameos instead of appearing all throughout the movie, it still manages to be another humorous, adventurous, and heartfelt story that all fans can appreciate.
