DreamWorks’ 2020 masterpiece ‘Puss in Boots: The Last Wish’ was an animation renaissance, with its style and story making for one of the most memorable releases of the 2020s yet. This was not the case with the studio’s newest release.
‘Kung Fu Panda 4’ didn’t charm audiences like its preceding trilogy. It’s no horror show. There are points of nostalgia for viewers who grew up watching the original movie, but the eight-year break between the third and fourth movies does the franchise no favor.
Where did we leave off? Oh, that’s right: with Po having accepted his role as a teacher and guide, a bridge between the Valley of Peace and the Panda Village. Quaint enough. But now the ‘Kung Fu Panda’ story feels distant and foreign. Audiences were promised a treat. They got a treat gone stale.
‘Kung Fu Panda 4’ follows Po on his journey to relinquish the title of Dragon Warrior and become the spiritual leader of the Valley of Peace. Po teams up with the sly criminal Zhen on a quest to defeat an evil sorceress, The Chameleon. Very little of the original trilogy remains. The Furious Five are dismissed in Po’s first scene, off fighting never-before-mentioned villains. Shifu broods more than usual, and Juniper City replaces the Valley of Peace.
The movie takes too many risks. The first movie in a saga takes the risks, introducing absurd characters and an absurd plot. First movies turn a crime fighting panda into an Oscar-nominated phenomenon. Fourth movies send characters off in the best of lights — at least they should. This installment, however, pays no homage to its original, and its new characters add nothing to what the first three movies built. They add no charm, no wisdom, and they certainly innovate no interesting plot.
Po’s fox “friend” Zhen claims to know The Chameleon inside and out: her whereabouts, her motive, her plan. So she leads and Po plays the bumbling fool, which would work, except we already have an older, better version of this. Po’s and Zhen’s relationship mirrors Po’s relationship with Tigris. Po and Tigris struggled for years over destiny and competition. Audiences have seen the hurt and triumph.
And as for Po as the fool? Let watchers remember this is the panda who brought himself back from the spirit realm with Oogway’s staff of wisdom. He is no fool. He is the Dragon Warrior.
DreamWorks excels in animation style and Jack Black impresses again with his voice acting performance. And although the story lacks coherence and emotional weight, the creativity of the action scenes are captivating as always.
But the positives stop there. This is a passive piece of modern animation. It adds nothing. It subtracts nothing. DreamWorks should aim higher, and for now, it will have to postpone that animation renaissance.
