Kung Fu Panda 2 [PG]

Many years ago, a rich and wise family of peacocks ruled Gongmen City. But Lord Shen: practiser of the Dark Arts and heir to the throne, threatened the peaceful city. Although it caused them great pain, his mother and father banished him after he mercilessly slaughtered all pandas in order to stop a prophecy from coming true. For many years, Lord Shen waited, devising and constructing a great weapon that he would one-day use to have his revenge. Now it’s up to Po and the Furious Five to stop Lord Shen before he destroys China and Kung Fu. 

I didn’t think the first Kung Fu Panda left much to make a successful sequel, but obviously, with the help of clever writers, it did. I absolutely loved the first movie and I have to say that number two really stands up. What was particularly great about it was that it really did feel like things in the first movie set up everything for this film. With all our favourite characters and a few new ones, Kung Fu Panda 2 was a really fun and lovely film. I even teared up once or twice. It’s definitely going into the collection when the DVD comes out. 

Many years ago, a rich and wise family of peacocks ruled Gongmen City. But Lord Shen: practiser of the Dark Arts and heir to the throne, threatened the peaceful city. It was foretold that “a warrior of black and white” would defeat Lord Shen if he continued down his chosen dark path and so, he mercilessly slaughtered all pandas to prevent the prophecy from coming true. Although it caused them great pain, his mother and father, following his terrible action, banished him. For many years, Lord Shen waited, devising and constructing a great weapon that he would one-day use to have his revenge. Now that day has come and it falls on Po and the Furious Five to stop Lord Shen before he destroys China and the ancient art of Kung Fu. 

The beautiful animation is identical to that of the first one, but there is a different type of animation thrown into the mix of this one to represent Po’s nightmares. I found this really good as it was easy for the audience to know what was going on, but it also added that element of fear. Whilst I was in the cinema today watching it, a few of the younger children in the audience actually began crying. 

All our favourite characters are back with all the original cast members reprising their voice rolls. I simply must say that the new villain, Lord Shen, is just fantastic. I don’t think anyone could have thought that a peacock would make a convincing villain, but Lord Shen, magnificently voiced by Gary Oldman, was both beautiful and frightening. One of the best animal villains that I have seen on screen, without a doubt he was my favourite thing in this film. 

Featuring the voice talents of Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Lucy Liu, David Cross, Jackie Chan, James Hong, Michelle Yeoh, Danny McBride, Dennis Haysbert, Dustin Hoffman, Seth Rogan, Victor Garber, and Jean-Claude Van Damme, Kung Fu Panda 2 is a real visual treat filled with action, knockout kung fu sequences, dazzling animation, loveable characters, and memorable moments of both emotional drama and comedy. Just as good, if not better, than the first film, I absolutely LOVED it!