Culture news “It’s amazing” DreamWorks is making a comeback in cinema after a bitter failure. My opinion on Kung Fu Panda 4
DreamWorks has been blowing hot and cold in theaters in recent years. After the excellent surprise Puss in Boots 2: The Last Quest in 2022, animation studios faced the harsh reality of the box office. Ruby, the teenage Kraken, was massively shunned by the public. In 2024, the firm calls on an animation star capable of seducing young and old to restore its image… the dragon warrior Po. Can Kung Fu Panda 4 repeat the feat of cinema’s most cuddly swordsman ? Kung Fu Panda 4 enters the arena at the end of March 2024!
Kung Fu Panda 4 in a few words
The story of the most “stylish” panda in the 7th Art began in 2008 with the release on the big screen of Kung Fu Panda, a colorful fable driven by DreamWorks Animation. 16 years, 3 animated films and 3 animated series later, Po’s adventures continue in the cinema with a fourth feature film simply named Kung Fu Panda 4. This new martial epic is directed by Mike Mitchell, an American filmmaker who cut his teeth on The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water (2015) and The LEGO Movie 2 (2019).
The original cast is back for Kung Fu Panda 4 including Jack Black in the role of the giant panda Po, but also Dustin Hoffman and James Hong who respectively play Master Shifu and Mr. Ping (Po’s adoptive father). The new characters of the vixen Zhen and the Chameleone are entrusted to Awkwafina (Migration, The Bad Guys) and Viola Davis (Hunger Games: The Ballad of the Serpent and the Songbird, The Suicide Squad).
Kung Fu Panda 4 follows the events of the third film. After surviving his previous adventures, Po is entrusted with a new one… becoming the spiritual leader of the Valley of Peace. But before he enjoys some well-deserved rest, he must train a new dragon warrior. The appearance of the powerful witch Chameleone will upset his plans. The shapeshifting lizard seeks to seize the staff of wisdom in order to reinvoke from the spirit realm all the evil masters defeated by the dragon warrior.
The voice cast of the film Kung Fu Panda 4 (in original version):
- Jack Black: the dragon warrior Po
- Awkwafina: Zhen
- Viola Davis: the Chameleone
- Dustin Hoffman as Master Shifu Sweng
- Bryan Cranston as Li
- Ke Huy Quan: Han
- Ian McShane as Tai Lung
- James Hong as Mr. Ping
- Ronny Chieng: Fish
Kung Fu Panda 4 is released in cinemas in France on March 27, 2024.
The master of coolness
Many movie fans swear by the original versions (or VO), and I can partly understand this point of view. However, in my opinion there are several exceptions… the films of our childhood (starting with Full Metal Jacket and Good Morning Vietnam) and animated productions. The series The Simpsons, for example, is considered much better in the French version thanks to the talents of the dubbing actors. Animated cinema can be appreciated at its true value regardless of the language… provided you don’t give in to the Star-Talent trend which favors celebrity over know-how and quality localization (and not translation).
Kung Fu Panda 4 offers the services of several big names from the French-speaking cinema world including Manu Payet and Pierre Arditi who once again lend their voices to Po and Maître Shifu respectively. The other actors and actresses are not to be outdone and deliver vocal performances that match the martial prowess of the Dragon warrior. And speaking of martial prowess, the coolest panda in the 7th Art has certainly evolved since his first adventures, but remains the same goofy hero who is quick to kick ass in style.
DreamWorks Animation maintains a 3D artistic direction that we can describe as traditional (unlike Puss in Boots 2 which clearly has its eye on Spider-Man: Into/Across the Spider-Verse) and which fits perfectly with this feudal, fantastic and fantasized China. The technical mastery is once again to be saluted and does honor to this animated saga which has accompanied young and old for 16 long years now. The artists still allow themselves some visual follies during more “arty” sequences which denote without ever distorting the projected cinematographic work.
It is difficult, if not impossible, to make an objective judgment on the humor of the film. Whether you laugh or remain unmoved by Po’s punchlines and other blunders depends on you and you alone, and your sensitivity. For my part, I may be 38 years old in 2024, but I found myself smiling on many occasions and even laughing without sulking my pleasure throughout Kung Fu Panda 4. With its tone which really suits all audiences, including the youngest, the new adventure of the dragon warrior is to be enjoyed with the family. Several themes are even likely to resonate with an adult audience, whether it is resistance to change, the passing of the torch or the transmission of knowledge to younger generations.
“We don’t charge for toplessness and seductiveness.” Kung Fu Panda 4 is stylish, punchy and fun to the highest degree. This is the nice animated surprise of the first quarter of 2024. It would be a shame not to give in to the call of the master of coolness.