Spoilers Ahead
“Kung Fu Panda 4” premiered in theaters Mar. 8 as another film that ventured into uncharted territory within the franchise’s cinematic universe but still left audiences unsatisfied by its end. The movie, having to balance between establishing a sense of familiarity for audiences while still providing a new and creative storyline in the short span of one hour and 34 minutes, fell short despite its significant potential.
The story once again starts with Po (Jack Black), who must grapple with who will succeed him as the next Dragon Warrior as he transitions into the highest position of Spiritual Leader. With the emergence of a powerful and corrupt sorcerer known as The Chameleon (Viola Davis), however, Po quickly puts this mission on hold and journeys to Juniper City with a fox named Zhen (Awkwafina), who steals for a living, in hopes of defeating The Chameleon.
Possibly due to a want for nostalgia or it being eight years since the previous film, “Kung Fu Panda 3,” the movie’s decision to focus on the issue of Po’s successor felt somewhat abrupt in the franchise’s timeline. When considering Master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman), who started teaching Po at an old age, and the buildup of the previous films in developing Po’s role as the Dragon Warrior, audiences cannot help but be hesitant in suddenly passing the baton to a new character. The plot point came off as somewhat forced, coming from a desire by the filmmakers to introduce Po’s inner turmoil in a way that could drive the story, but even then, it became muddled by the larger conflicts that dominated in capturing the audience’s attention. Despite Zhen, the other protagonist, taking center stage in this film, her motivations, actions and alliances became too predictable to fill in this gap in complexity.
On a similar level, the villain of the film, The Chameleon, suffers an anticlimactic defeat, largely because her backstory remains shallow and underdeveloped as the movie progresses. The antagonists are what have made the “Kung Fu Panda” franchise what it is today, and this film was no exception to that pattern. The shapeshifting sorcerer contained immense potential. Although extremely small, she is a scary, heartless and intriguing force that demands to be reckoned with. Her shockingly insensitive one-liners and transformations into humongous, sometimes mutated creatures did not fail to strike fear into the other characters and audiences alike. In addition, Viola Davis made The Chameleon completely her own, her voice perfectly channeling the immense superiority and disgust that the villain consistently embodied in her actions.
The complexity of The Chameleon’s character, which would have further elevated her quest for power, was not properly fleshed out by the end of the film. Of course, not all villains have to be nuanced. Velvet and Veneer from “Trolls 3” were so enticing and entertaining as antagonists because they were shallow, superficial and similarly matched with a satirical backstory. Knowing the premise of The Chameleon’s character, however, it did not feel as though the film was pushing her in that direction, leaving her with a roughly 20-30 second monologue about being excluded from learning Kung Fu because of her size as her motivation. In addition, the climax of the movie brought the franchise’s previous villains back into the current timeline, which ended up being a missed opportunity by the filmmakers to create a suspenseful conflict composed of Po facing all his previous nemeses that would have lessened the movie’s predictability.
That being said, the film brought new aspects to its cinematic universe that still made it an entertaining watch. The choice to immerse Po into the new world of Juniper City, a bustling juxtaposition to the Valley of Peace in the countryside, was a strategic choice in keeping audiences hooked. In Juniper City, Po is not only forced to navigate new terrain but also a place where no one knows who the Dragon Warrior is. It is instead a place where The Chameleon rules and thieves thrive, and the unlikely help he finds with Zhen’s previous syndicate and his two dads, Li Shan (Bryan Cranston) and Mr. Ping (James Hong), acted as a continuous source of humor for the movie.
“Kung Fu Panda 4” was an action-packed movie that is sure to keep audiences engaged, but it struggled to meet the expectations set by the series’ past films due to its simple and predictable storytelling. Its predecessors had found a way to thoughtfully yet humorously develop each character and build the plot toward its climax. Although the incorporation of new settings and characters made the new movie an enjoyable addition to the franchise, it was not enough for it to set itself apart from the others and stand on its own.
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