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Kung Fu Panda 4 — Review: Enjoyable, Even with Missing Pieces
by KJ Proulx
The Kung Fu Panda movies have always just been well-done pieces of family entertainment. Nothing more and nothing less, but the first movie in particular was far better than I expected it to be. For that reason alone, I’ll always give the sequels a chance. I have to admit though that I thought this franchise had reached its conclusion with the third instalment, which was eight years ago now. Well, after watching this fourth instalment, even though I didn’t mind watching it, it’s not as special as it once was. Here’s why I feel this is the weakest Kung Fu Panda movie.
About to become a new leader for his people, Po (Jack Black) must find a replacement for his title of Dragon Warrior. With the emergence of a new villain in The Chameleon (Viola Davis), Po teams up with a new character named Zhen (Awkwafina) and they embark on a journey to find her. Her powers can bring back previous franchise villains from the spirit realm and Po may have to face some old enemies along the way. She can also shapeshift into anything and anyone, including our main characters, which is a trope many movies have done before, but it was enjoyable enough here. Look, there just isn’t the same amount of heart as the previous movies and the biggest glaring issue is the absence of the Furious Five.
The Furious Five (for those of you unaware of the previous movies) is an elite team that eventually put Po in the position he is in now. Their presence as side characters throughout the franchise was honestly what added to the stories. This time, they are completely written out in favour of one sidekick and a smaller budget for the movie. This bled through and became a distracting piece that just felt missing. I’m sure a far better film could’ve been made that didn’t include them, but having the same energy as the first three, while not nearly as much fun, made Kung Fu Panda 4 kind of feel pointless, even though I still enjoyed watching it for what it was.
This is a movie that will probably find a large audience with kids, but I’m not sure how many adults will find this one entertaining. For being a movie about Kung Fu, there’s also a lot less action and it’s by far the shortest entry when you take out the credits. In many ways, this feels thrown together for a quick cash grab, which I honestly understand if you’re a studio thinking about which franchises can still be profitable, it’s just that more care could’ve easily been put in. This is in no way a bad movie, it’s just a watchable animated sequel that had a few nice moments. With a couple of solid laughs and a touching finale, I’ll recommend this one to kids, but it’s not something to rush out for.
Rating: 3/5
Check out the trailer below:
