The Gang of Five
Beyond the Mysterious Beyond => The Arts => Silver Screen => Topic started by: Spartanguy88 on June 01, 2011, 04:40:05 PM
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It had everything I hoped it would have: More personal story, great art work, and character development.
Po and the Furious Five are called upon when they learn that a peacock named Lord Shen has taken control of Gongmen City with a weapon so powerful it threatens the very existence of kung fu. They set out to destroy the weapon, liberate the city, and stop Shen. However, Po soon learns that Shen may be connected to his past in more ways than he can imagine.
The story in this movie, while still retaining its humor and heartwarming moments, also has a darker tone to it this time around. Those who have had that one big question from the first movie: "Why is Po's father a goose?", they will get that answer, as well as what happened with his biological parents. I won't spoil anything, but be prepared for an emotional "Bambi"-esqe moment.
The characters are also worth taking a great note of. Po goes through many emotions in this flick: Happiness, sadness, anger, courageous, etc... as he learns about his mysterious past. Of course he also has many funny moments. I love that they've matured him without sacrificing his natural sense of humor. And more importantly, while he is voiced by Jack Black, there's a lot less Jack Black-y and more of a character that you can totally believe. I know, it's hard to describe with words. XP Go see the movie for yourself and you'll see.
The Furious Five also have a much bigger role this time around, especially Tigress and Mantis. It was really nice to see Tigress not only far less hostile towards our favorite panda, but also as a close friend and confident. And there were some scenes between the two that suggest that the writers toyed around with the idea of a romance sub-plot between them. While there is no romance between Po and Tigress in KFP2, there could most likely be some in the future films. And even if Po doesn't hook up with Tigress, I'm perfectly fine with them being close friends.
While the rest of the Five could have been used more, they still had their moments to shine. Mantis was my particular favorite with many great lines such as:
(May not be 100% accurate)
"I always figured I'd go out by settling down with a nice girl... then she'd eat my head."
I also wished they used a lot more of Master Shifu. I loved his dry sense of humor in the first movie. At least he does have a great scene near the beginning of the movie.
Lord Shen may now go down as one of my favorite animated villains. Kudos to Dreamworks for casting Gary Oldman for the role. He delivered the voice of a truly psychotic and deranged mad man obsessed with conquering China. Plus, it's the first time I've ever seen a peacock look intimidating and even scary at some moments.
The artwork has got to be some of the best I've seen in any animated film; and that's coming from a guy who's seen every Pixar movie ever made. I loved the different styles they used for the intro sequence, the mainstream film, and the flashbacks. All so different yet the blend together so well.
In conclusion, despite it's flaws (underused secondary characters and somewhat predictable plot) they can be easily overlooked with their outstanding attention to art, story, and characters. I seriously think Pixar will really have a run for it's money this year.
9.5 out of 10 STARS
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I'm really looking forward to seeing this film..
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I really agree there Spartanguy88. I loved this movie. While yes, the plot was a little predictable, and the secondary characters were sort of sidelined in favor of others, high marks REALLY go to the character studies and how they were written. I think it was a fair trade off, as character development and well written characters are almost just as important to me as a good plot. It was phenomenal, and I totally agree about Lord Shen. He was quite the villain, and so very conflicted as well. The animation on him was superb, and Gary Oldman was just incredible bringing him to life. You could really sense his inner struggles, and he made for such a fantastic psychotic, as you said. XD
I was gonna write a review myself, but you pretty much covered everything I wanted to say, so I may was well just ride the crest of your review. XD :p Really high marks for me on this film. I'd give it a 9 or 9.5 myself.
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As for the predictable ending, with the good guys winning and the bad guys losing, it's really no suprise considering what kind of a movie it is; but it's also the stuff that goes in between the beginning and the end that really matters too. You know that Thor, Green Lantern, and Captain America are going to save the day, but that doesn't make the rest of the film un-enjoyable, right?
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My friend wants me to go see this film with her, do I need to see the first one? Or is it a completely new story?
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Well... you could go see the second movie if you want to, but I'd rent and watch the first movie too for everything to make sense.
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Ok, will do. Thanks for the reply.
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Saw it yesterday and loved it. My only issue with it is with all these big time actors like Jackie Chan, Seth Rogan, Jean-Claud Van Damme, and Dennis haysbert I was expecting a little more dialog or a little more out of them other than Po and Tigress. But still I enjoyed the movie regardless.
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^Yeah, I hope they fix that in the next film.
Something I forgot to mention:
Mr. Ping was also a great character in this movie. I loved how James Hong was able to deliver lines that were both flat out hilarious and at other times very heart-warming.
PS: Baby Po was so freaking adorable!
EDIT: I just HAVE to post Shifu's great line...
Shifu: Every Master must find his own path to inner peace.... Some find it through pain and suffering as I did. Po, the day you were chosen as Dragon Warrior, was the worst day of my life...by far.
Po: <_<
Shifu: Nothing else came close. It was the worst most painful, mind destroying, horrible moment-
Po: Oookay.
Shifu: -I have ever experienced. (Shudders)
I love that guy.
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I loved this movie. I don't think I have any flaws about it whatsoever. This movie comes in second place for best animated movie of 2011 for me. (First in my opinion is Rio)
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I just watched it with my boyfriend.
And, honestly, I think it's BETTER than the first =P
One of the reasons being that I felt that Lord Shen was a better villain than Tai Lung. I felt more reason to feel attatchment to him and "don't go D: !" feelings toward the end of the movie.
I also had more opportuntiy to grow on the other characters after their development from the first movie...at least Po, who I REALLY liked more in this one than the first. And his dad. I loved how more depth was put into the relationship between him and his dad.
Now that the ending was a cliffhanger, I'm actually looking forward to a third movie.
While the first movie was good enough to see once in a while, I think I might watch the second more than the first. It's one of the few I can think of, now that I think about it, that can put out a pretty darn good series. With the first preview of the first movie, I thought "You have GOT to be kidding me! It's just going to be some other stupid movie" and wound up liking it. Then the second trailer came out and I thought "this had better be good."
Same goes for the third.
Off to deviantART and Lord Shen raiding!
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I just watched it with my boyfriend.
And, honestly, I think it's BETTER than the first =P
One of the reasons being that I felt that Lord Shen was a better villain than Tai Lung. I felt more reason to feel attatchment to him and "don't go D: !" feelings toward the end of the movie.
I also had more opportuntiy to grow on the other characters after their development from the first movie...at least Po, who I REALLY liked more in this one than the first. And his dad. I loved how more depth was put into the relationship between him and his dad.
Now that the ending was a cliffhanger, I'm actually looking forward to a third movie.
While the first movie was good enough to see once in a while, I think I might watch the second more than the first. It's one of the few I can think of, now that I think about it, that can put out a pretty darn good series. With the first preview of the first movie, I thought "You have GOT to be kidding me! It's just going to be some other stupid movie" and wound up liking it. Then the second trailer came out and I thought "this had better be good."
Same goes for the third.
Off to deviantART and Lord Shen raiding!
I totally agree with the relationship development between Po and Mr. Ping. But what are your thoughts on the development between Po and Tigress?
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I agree. It was an awesome movie to be sure.
Not sure if anyone else caught this, but I'm pretty sure that at least twice, Lord Shen pulls his spear out of his sleeve. Does he have a hyperspace pocket in there somewhere?
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^LOL, you mean like the sub-space bag Ramona Flowers has in the Scott Pilgrim series. XD
EDIT:
Not going to spoil anything here...
But what about the big scene where Po learns the truth about his past? I gotta say, for a PG rated family movie, it was pretty dark. And I nearly teared up upon Po's reaction to recalling his past.
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Well, I'd have to agree with crane on the beak-dropping, but I REALLY liked the development of Tigress as a whole.
In the first movie, I thought she was a bit of a b!tch, but you really can't blame her. However, I liked her a lot more in this one.
Haha, I teared up at something, but I don't remember. Maybe one of the flashback sequences. Kinda like when Oogway...er...spirited away in the first movie. Oh, speaking of which, I was surprised by how incredibly brutal the deaths were. Like...ho-ly COW!
I do kinda wish they had a flashback of Shen as an infant/child like they did with Tai Lung. He would have been adorable! And had more emphasis on the Soothsayer being his nanny, which is one of the reasons why he's so much softer to her than to anyone else. I especially imagine him being the type to say, "Hey! Don't insult to Soothsayer! No one insults the Soothsayer!...Except for me!"
The relationship between Shen and the Soothsayer is most certainly my favorite, besides Po and Mr. Ping. I like the interspecies parent-child theme in the series...which ended up to creating my own little thing.
A short-clawed River Otter, who is to be the magistratess of a small river town after her elderly uncle, raises a mute swan cygnet named Bashou (I typed "basket child" into a translation engine, and the closest definiton was "given up", which is what "bashou" means. And comes pretty close to what happened with him.)
I don't have a name for the future magistratess yet, but I think I'll go for the lines of her "battle mom" attitude with him.
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I love this movie. Me and some buds and my partner were the only ones in the theater so we were able to shout out our "awww's" and "Oh snap's!"
I love the past for Po and the seemingly hand drawn moments.
Lord Shen is my fave out of the KFP series so far! I loved his battle claws!
I reccomend this movie to EVERYONE!
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Another one of my favorite quotes from the movie:
Shen: The only reason you are still alive is that I find your stupidity... mildly amusing.
Po: Well thank you, but I find your evilness extremely annoying!
Shen: Who do you think you are, Panda?
Po: Who do you think I am, Peacock?
[both laugh]
Po: Why are we laughing?
lulz
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I made a STAMP (http://bat-snake.deviantart.com/#/d3j2xav)of that scene :DD !
And of just Shen laughing... (http://bat-snake.deviantart.com/#/d3j369a) It must be an iconplz!
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CONTAINS SPOILERS! READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!
I laughed so hard when Po threw his straw hat to try to free the Five from their chains. It also reminded me a bit of Kung Lao from the Mortal Kombat series. Don't know what I'm talking about?
Watch this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMUgtLJB9ZI (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMUgtLJB9ZI)
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Watched it with my girlfriend. Compared to the original Kung-Fu Panda it has more touching moments and a deeper story line. And it's definetly better. :yes
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Never saw it yet. I will someday.
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SPOILER ALERT
I've been thinking about the big twist at the very end of the movie, where Po's biological father is still alive and living with other pandas, and I realized just how brilliant it was for the guys at Dreamworks to put that in.
Considering that the KFP film series is going to be a six-part saga, it was important for them to have something that connects this movie to the next in the series. It's like that one huge plot twist at the season finale of a TV series, like Lost.
That's just my opinion.
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I'm kinda looking forward to seeing how that worked all worked out with those survivors.
...
But mostly, I do hope there's more of that connected to Shen screwing around with his fate XD . Great job fixing it, there.
Aw, man, we Shen fangirls are hoping that he pops back up somehow.
"GREETINGS PANDA!"
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I agree, I would like to see Shen again in some way in the next movie; even if he'll be in some flashback sequence that'll show how Po's father survived the panda massacre.
Shen was such an awesome villain. Aside from the fact that he's the guy who (presumably) murdered Po's mother, I loved the animation and voice of him. He was so sinister; far more sinister and twisted than Tai Lung. But I also like how they made him conflicted too when the Soothsayer told him that his parents did love him when he thought they always hated him. It's important to make even the bad guys not wind up being either Mary Sues or Gary Stus.
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I guess my favorite thing about Shen is his relationship with the Soothsayer.
Like I said before, she was his nanny, and was really the only person who gave him the love he wanted. So, in the movie, she's probably the only person he really loves.
Which is why he's FAR more lenient to her than anyone else.
I find it funny that when some sources mention that he does threaten her, but he really doesn't.
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By the sounds of it there could be a third installment.
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They have plans to make six.
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I've heard that as well. It's pretty ambitious, but they also said the main film series will revolve around one massive story arc. So far it sounds like it'll work a lot better than most other animated sequels.
To me, the biggest problem with animated sequels is that they always seem to end one story, then instantly move onto a whole new one. The only exception I'm willing to make to that rule is the Toy Story movies; but that generic problem is IMO what led to the downfall of the Shrek series.
In other KFP related news, you guys should totally check out my fan fic that I'm writing and posting on ff.net. I'll post the link to it in the Written Word section of this site.
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Kung Fu Panda mostly sticks to a story.
The second is about how Po came to be what he was, and the third might just finish it...mooostly...the latter three is, for the most part, a big mystery.
When I watched it with my boyfriend, I was like "a cliffhanger! Third movie won't be random sh!t!"
Also, I told my boyfriend that as soon as I got home, I'd be raiding dA for Shen art. Right as I realized I adored him, I also realized that he was probably gonna die.
So, when the Soothsayer said "you will find yourself...at the bottom of the stairs", I thought he was going to get killed falling off a flight of stairs. But she was just messin' with him.
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I loved that scene as well, along with what was said after that part:
Soothsayer: I see... I see... I see pain. (plucks out one of Shen's feathers)
Shen: Ow!
Soothsayer: And anger. (bites Shen's robe)
Shen: How dare you! That is the finest silk in the province!
Soothsayer: Followed by denial.
Shen: This is not fortune-telling! You're just saying what is happening right--
Soothsayer: Now?
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I also liked how Tigress' attitude towards Po has drastically changed since the first movie. I'm amazed how it went from...
"You're a discrage to kung fu and if you have any respect for who we are and what we do, you will be gone by morning."
All the way to...
"The hardcore do understand... but I can't watch my friend be killed."
Pretty remarkable in my opinion.
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I need to see it soon. It looks really good.
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I loved Tigress' transition too.
I especially liked her not-caring attitude of Po's Shifu impression to daring him to stuff two more bean buns into his mouth XD ! (And, in the credits of the first film, she is doing a Shifu impression with a noodle-stache...with Shifu laughing at it).
And I loved how Crane just seemed to be asking for a hug after she hugged Po XD .
My favorite part, though, is when Shen was with the Soothsayer in the fireworks factory, when the Soothsayer told him that his parents really loved him, when he had thought that they hated him.
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^ I have to say, that's my favorite scene of this film as well. It really does capture how conflicted of a character he is, and that he isn't just your cut and dry villain. I think he really played a big part (for me at least) in making this movie what it was, and complimented the plot rather well. I was secretly hoping the whole time that maybe by some remote chance things would not end as they did for him. But yeah, as it's a six part series, he's just one aspect of the story that Po will be encountering, though he certainly made for one of the best of those aspects. :DD And well, he was the whole contrast to Po as well. I guess in writing the story they wanted one to benefit from their traumatic past, and the other to not do so.
And your otter and cygnet idea sounds awesome, Ptyra! I love otters, myself (hence why I bought a plush of one for my Birthday :DD), and it sounds like a rather fascinating concept. :D
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I also loved this line...
Monkey: At the first sight of trouble, I'll give you a signal. Ka-kaw! Kee-kee!
Po: You mean like Crane does?
Monkey: Yeah.
Crane: Excuse me, when have I ever made that noise?
Then later on durig the final battle, Crane does in fact make that noise. XD
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I really didn't like the movie. Everything that happened was so utterly predictable that it ruined it for me. Not to mention the overall storyline just sucked. It was too simple and too overly used - and I don't watch a lot of movies. <_< Overall a huge disappointment. I was expecting much more from 3 years of constant work.
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Well I will watch the movie and see for myself if it's that bad of a movie.
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Don't say it like that, it's not a bad movie at all. I thought the storyline was a lot more personal than the first.
That goes for Lord Shen as well. Tai Lung mainly had a major beef with Shifu and Po never met him or heard of him until the events of the first movie. Shen on the other hand had a lot to do with what happened to his parents, so he's a very fitting villain for Po to fight.
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Ah that's good that you liked the movie. I'm glad you did.
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I loved that scene as well, along with what was said after that part:
Soothsayer: I see... I see... I see pain. (plucks out one of Shen's feathers)
Shen: Ow!
Soothsayer: And anger. (bites Shen's robe)
Shen: How dare you! That is the finest silk in the province!
Soothsayer: Followed by denial.
Shen: This is not fortune-telling! You're just saying what is happening right--
Soothsayer: Now?
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I also liked how Tigress' attitude towards Po has drastically changed since the first movie. I'm amazed how it went from...
"You're a discrage to kung fu and if you have any respect for who we are and what we do, you will be gone by morning."
All the way to...
"The hardcore do understand... but I can't watch my friend be killed."
Pretty remarkable in my opinion.
Well when she first said that Po was just a Panda. He had just started off as getting to know the Furious Five. So I would think that her attitude towards him would change drastically once he proved himself to be the real Dragon Warrior and save China.
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I just say this. And I am speechless.
The movie was absolutely amazing! I loved the whole thing! It was totally epic. Better than the first? Phooey to that. It made the first look horrible! And the first was pretty good.
First off, Shen was a much better villian than Tai Lung, as said before. Instead of just wanting to conquer China for just...conquering China without any real backstory towards any of the main characters except Shifu, Shen wanted to just coz he's a freaking awesome villian, and he has a connection to Po's past, which was told brilliantly. Not a fangirl (yet, that is), but pretty dang inpressed by his awesomeness.
Absolutely loved the flash backs of Po's past and how Shen killed his mother and how she risked her life for his. I swear I got teary-eyed when that moment came around...and it takes a lot to do that!
I recommend this to anyone who wants to see it. You will not be disappointed. :yes
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I've been obsessed with this movie for a while now and as my avatar shows........LORD SHEN IS MY FAVORITE CHARACTER IN THE WHOLE FREAKIN MOVIE!!!! So much better than Tai Lung.
I didn't care for Tai Lung at all in the first movie and I tend to love villains. He just rubbed me as a spoiled brat throwing a tantrum cause he didn't get what he wanted. Shen, on the other hand, is a lot more developed and there's real reason for his hostility and is a very sympathetic character (I mean, his parents practically abandoned him because of his sickly albino-ness for much of his chickhood, saying how he wasn't really "worth attention"....That's harsh; so when they banished him, he probably had very good reason to believe they hated him).
When I first saw this movie, I was having a very tough day (I was literally packed up and on the verge of running away from home) and I wanted to have some comfort. So I randomly watched KFP 2 while sulking in the mall, as it was the only one showing that I had th slightest interest in. I liked the movie, but it didn't leave too big an impression. I admit, I thought Shen was rather goofy looking with his huge, often deranged-looking eyes. In fact, when I first watched that movie, one Shen scene in particular creeped me out: his angry smile at the Wolf Boss during the Year of the Peacock scene ("Happy New Year, sir...!"). Coupled with that intense stare Shen was giving, I had pretty much the same reaction as Wolf Boss....eye contact with Shen during that scene was chilling and I couldn't do it :oops . By now, me being the Shen fangirl I am, I love that scene and I like the residual chill that look still gives me....so creepy, but AWESOME!!!! Plus the added fact that this albino PEACOCK could make an alpha male WOLF fidget like a puppy... That's saying something about Shen, people!! :lol:
Anywho, back to the focus... at some point, I went to see it again for reasons beyond me and fell in love with Shen this time around. Since then, I've been feeding that obsession with Shen art, Shen fanfics, Shen backstory, and watching KFP 2 again and again and again and again!! Unfortunatly, I didn't get the chance to watch it in 3D; I heard the 3D was amazing in this movie, can anyone tell me if that's true? :)
And don't get me started on how much I cried during Po's Flashback of the Panda massacre....
Overall, this movie was awesome!! Shen made it worth watching repeatedly and obsessively!!