Kung Fu Panda 2

josh: Aaannd begin

matt: Ah, there you are. So, you saw Kung Fu Panda 2?

josh: Yes.

matt: So what did you think?

josh: I loved it

matt: Yeah, I liked it too

josh: I had a bit of a time at first, because someone decided that bringing a crying infant to the movie was a good idea

matt: Oh, yeah... well, it is animated - kind of crying baby territory...

josh: i missed a couple slower scenes in the beginning with the father, and some of the one on the boat, but I saw enough to know what was going on.

matt: I thought the quality of the character animation was amazing... so subtle

josh: amazing, I agree.

the acting on the peacock was outstanding, especially when he became enraged

it matched Gary Oldman's voice performance perfectly, and enhanced it

matt: It's like they've taken what used to be a problem with CG - that you can't have a character stop moving or it'll look weird - and turned that into another tool. There was so much subtle, micro-expression type stuff going on, and the peacock was one of the characters where that stood out to me especially.

josh: the subtlety they can get with CG is amazing

matt: There was a scene towards the end, where the peacock had a moment of realization, and Oldman had read the line with a pause in the middle. The animator used that pause to put in just the most understated head tilt, with a shift of gaze, and you really got the sense of what he was thinking in that moment.

josh: I know, it was like watching something alive. just as alive as an actual person.

i need to see it again to properly geek out about it. It all ran by so fast, and i was distracted in the beginning.

matt: And the movie was full of that level of acting. I really think the Dreamworks animators are at the top of their game. They were already doing some of the most subtle hand-drawn stuff back when they still made 2D films at the studio, and since they shifted to 3D they've just built and built on that already amazing foundation...

josh: yeah. i'm glad they are as consistent as they are.

their traditional stuff was really on the money back then, i'm glad to see them carry that through

i'd like to look at the credits to see which animators are still around from then

i also liked how the furious five characters had more of a presence in this movie
maybe not all of them across the board, but they didn't feel superfluous, it was a good mixmatt: There was also a really cool scene with Po at the beginning, when he was about to go with the Furious Five to kick some ass, where he was hopping from foot to foot, going "come on, I'm ready!", which was just amazing. Hopping from foot to foot, pounding his fist, shaking his head back and forth, like a boxer before the bell.... I was watching it thinking, "Oh my God!" It was one of those snap-your-pencil-and-throw-it-away moments..

josh:lol.

matt: That was actually one of the things that I thought was a bit weird... Tigress and Mantis had much bigger roles in this one, and I couldn't help but wonder if there was some Hollywood stuff going on, like "Unless they get more lines, they're not going to do it"

I mean Lucy Liu had what, two lines?

josh: yeah, but she still did it

its a paycheck

i'm glad they didn't put stuff in for them that was unnecessary, just because they had to incorporate them

there were a lot of characters, but i think they were all essential to the storytelling

matt: Well, I guess what I'm saying is I felt there were almost too many characters in this one - especially with the addition of THREE new Kung Fu Masters (all of whom were cool and I wanted more of)

josh: even the Ox and the Croc

yeah, i did want more of them, but you always want to leave them wanting more.

if you look at what was done w/ the characters, it all made the story play out in the right places

matt: I really thought the lighting in this was WAAY cool. Unlike anything I've seen in a CG film to date.

Very expressionistic in places, using color in a way I've not seen since... Aladdin maybe?

josh: yeah, i thought the 1st movie was a breakthrough in animated CG films cinematically as well

this definitely kept the bar raised

matt: Yeah, true

josh: by the end with the boats and the city and the crowds i was like "wow.... wouldn't want to draw that."

that being said. as amazing as the CG animation was, when the traditional stuff came up, I felt it was so magical to look at. something CG just doesn't capture for me.

as in the 1st movie, i thought the animation on the father was beyond outstanding

matt: Actually, I didn't feel that with this one. The first movie, yes, but maybe there wasn't enough in this one? I don't know, I wasn't as impressed with the 2D stuff here

josh: the CG rig, the acting, everything

really, i guess i'm just a sucker for it.

matt: Yeah my last comment was about the 2D, not the Dad. He was great

josh: i didn't think it was as polished as the CG stuff....

matt: JAMES HONG IS DA BOMB!

josh: but it has this essence about it that mesmerizes me

JAMES HONG is definitely the bomb

i wonder if it was also the same supervising animator on that character as in the 1st one

matt: I thought the fight scenes were a bit cutty. Something that afflicts a lot of live action stuff these days too

josh: yeah, it was a bit hard to follow the fights

rudolph guenoden was the supervisor on that stuff again, tho

i think a lot of it has to do with the lighting,

matt: Well, he did the choreography, I don't think he chose the cuts, that was the director

josh: true

a woman director i was glad to see

matt: It was the same old "camera too close, shots cutting away too soon" thing

josh: the poses may have been there, but it may not play as well graphically

matt: I wanted to see MORE of the moves

josh: yeah, that's something i think you may be more aware of when you come from a traditional background.

matt: I'm just an old fuddy-duddy

At least the humor was well-staged

josh: the humor was good, nothing too silly and some very smart stuff

the comedic timing was great

i LOVED the part where Po was on top of the building in this heroic moment and no one could hear him

that was probably my favorite comedic bit

matt: Yeah, that was awesome. Also loved the way that the animals that couldn't be just a guy in a suit (e.g.the snake as opposed to Po) did their kung fu. Very creative animation there...

josh: and the references to female mantas eating their mate's heads

matt: yeah that was funny..

josh:

I was afraid i wasn't going to be emotionally engaged enough because I missed those scenes where they hook you in emotionally, but there was enough spread out to where I was hooked in when the time was right. That's the sign of a good movie, when you can miss things and still be engaged. one of the things I liked most about the 1st movie was how emotionally poignant it was, I was glad, even though, this was more action oriented, it still had those life lessons and family schmaltzy pathos.

matt: Yeah, I admit I teared up at the end... A good one for Father's Day.

josh:

i was worried i wasn't going to get choked up, but i'm glad i did

ok, i have a few more minutes, we could finish more later too

matt: One last thing .. I thought the final scene was a bit unnecessary. Kind of obvious sequel-bait

josh: which

w/ the father?

matt: Yeah, his real father

josh: oh the pandas yeah,

it's a setup for the 3rd movie

KUNG FU PANDAS

I bet

matt: It sort of suggests we'll be revisiting the same issues in the next movie, when they just resolved it.

Not a good sign

josh: yeah, but who knows, i didn't think they could pull this one off

i was expecting shrek sequel quality

if KFP1 was a home run, I'd say KFP2 was a triple

matt: I don't know what that means. Is that better or worse?

josh: third base

matt: Oh, so not quite as good. I agree.

josh: almost a home run

matt: Yep.

josh: for those reading, matt is an australian

my only "complaint" was, there was A LOT to take in. so much going on, but that's something with a lot of CG movies, they can put all this in and do so much, so they do. it's a movie, not a video game

matt: Yeah it was a bit a crammed

josh: and i think it's a waste when they have a celebrity do a couple lines for no reason. it takes work away from a regular voice actor

jean-claude van damme

victor garber

matt: I wanted more of those guys, but as you alluded to, how long can you make it?

josh: yeah, i think they used them enough, for the story and the jokes

they were really cool in a few bits, and that's all that was needed

the peacock was really great and he was the antagonist so i never minded going back to him

all and all it's a win, and I'm looking forward to seeing it again and picking it up when it's out on DVD.

matt: Me too!

Aaaaaand Scene!