Kung Fu Panda 4

This movie did not respect the background of the previous ones or the development of the characters, everything is very predictable and basic. Comedy is getting worse and worse; even if I prefer the humor of the first two movies, the third managed to get some laughs out of me, this one didn't. I wish the directors understood that what made the first two films successful was how deep the story was and how well the characters were developed, something that was lost in this one. Yes, it's a movie for kids, but the previous ones were also and they still managed to touch on dark themes and be enjoyable for adults; I'm currently 22 years old and I never got tired of watching Kung Fu Panda 2, laughing, crying and getting emotional like when I was 11. But this one is just forgettable.

My wife and I caught Kung Fu Panda 4 (2024) in theaters last night. The storyline introduces a new villain, a chameleon with shape-shifting abilities, aiming to take over the world. The chameleon seeks to use the staff Po received in Kung Fu Panda 3 to open a gateway to another dimension, summon kung fu masters, and steal their powers to become unstoppable. Simultaneously, Po must find his replacement to train as the next Dragon Warrior. Can Po save the world and find his apprentice simultaneously?

Co-directed by Mike Mitchell (Trolls) and Stephanie Stine (Major Motion Picture debut), the film features the voices of Jack Black (School of Rock), Viola Davis (The Help), Awkwafina (Crazy, Rich, Asians), Dustin Hoffman (Tootsie), James Hong (Big Trouble in Little China), Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad), and Ke Huy Quan (Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom).

The animation, animal universe, and the introduction of the new villain were excellent, as always. Viola Davis was a great addition, but Awkwafina's presence felt awkward and annoying. The absence of the Furious Five was noticeable, and the two-father subplot was just okay. The film strikes a good balance between lessons and comedy, and kept us laughing throughout. While the ending was rewarding, it didn't quite match the brilliance of previous films in the series.

In conclusion, Kung Fu Panda 4 offers a fun, above-average animated experience but stands as the weakest link in the series. I'd score it a 6/10 and recommend seeing it once.

I think the title of my review says it all. If I had to come up with a word to describe the film, it would merely be, "passable." I chuckled a couple of times and my kids (6 & 7) loved it. At the end of the day, I suppose that's money well spent. That being said, I am a huge fan of many DreamWorks franchises, including the first 3 KFP films, with the 3rd installment being the weakest of them, but still a good time. Compared to KP4, which didn't really add anything to the franchise, the 3rd film is a masterpiece. I found the pacing and the humor of KP4 all over the map. It felt like the film was rushing the audience along without time to really feel any of the emotions it wanted us to feel. It felt like a Saturday morning cartoon rather than a memorable addition to the KFP film canon.

So, in the end, I'm glad my kids loved it because I am promptly going to forget everything about this movie. When I think of KFP, scenes like Po finding inner peace in the ruins of his village in KFP 2 will always readily come to mind. I will continue to laugh at the jokes in the first 3 films, but even now I'm struggling to recall the best jokes of KFP4 and I just saw it not even an hour ago. The best, most enduring part of this movie is callback to villains of the previous films. Otherwise, it was one big colorful, fast-paced "Meh."

The kids will enjoy it though.

The simple formula like the one used in Cars 3. If you want to introduce a successor then you have to nerf the MC or other villians. The makers had an opportunity to utilize all the previous villains but they missed it. They could have atleast give Po a good shining moment and they kind of missed it too. They could have made the main villain more influential like Tai lung or Shen.

Po is quite young to pass the torch and atleast they he should have a big moment before he could agree on doing it. They took about 9 years to make this movie and still felt rushed.

I THINK THE BIGGEST ISSUE WITH MOVIE WAS ITS LENGHT. They could have give more screen time to all the important characters.

Probably the weakest of the franchise. Don't get me wrong, I had a lot of fun watching it. Four movies in, the charm is still there, and the chemistry between Po and Zhen were great. The charm might be there, but the emotion is missing. The villain was very weak and brought the movie down to me. What the first three were able to do were truly special with how they were able to bring humanity to the villains by connecting them to our heroes we love so much. That wasn't there for the Chameleon, but that being said. It's a new story, and it's time to let go of the past, don't worry it'll always be there.