Kung Fu Panda 4: Movie Review

Cast: Jack Black, Awkwafina, Viola Davis, Bryan Cranston, James Hong
Director: Mike Mitchell

Fast and frenetic, but tailing off in its final strait, Kung Fu Panda 4 represents an amiable passing of the torch story.

When Dragon warrior Po (an amiable and energetic Jack Black) is told he needs to find a successor so he can ascend to the next level of his calling, he's forced onto an adventure he doesn't really want - with Zhen (Awkwafina, the perfect foil for Black) a companion who's less than thrilled to be tagging along.

But that's not the only problem facing Po - a new threat is rising in the Valley of Peace, the evil Chameleon (Davis, on slinky menacing form)...

Kung Fu Panda 4 is the first return of the loveable rogue since the wrapping up of the trilogy in 2016, and shows that when done well, superior animation is more than passable enough family entertainment.

Packed full of action sequences and wonderful blink-and-you'll-miss-it sight gags, Kung Fu Panda 4 may lack some of the heart and spirituality of the previous films and may go more for a message that change is good, but also scary, yet it manages to feel like 100 minutes well spent in a cinema.

While the Chameleon doesn't really do much until the end, much of the movie's pleasures come from the odd couple journey of Zhen and Po. Both Black and Awkwafina make the camaraderie that grows between them feel real and warm, even if their journey follows very familiar beats.

There will be much to amuse children and young-at-heart parents here - and with momentary gags working with ease, the story doesn't exactly challenge audiences, but does provide them with enough sustenance.

Equally, the animation is perfectly fine too, with some gorgeous vistas, cities and underground worlds well committed to screen.

But if the movie feels like it's running out of creative steam, it's to both Black and Awkwafina's immense credit that they muster up plenty of on-screen charisma from just vocal work. They do much of the heavy lifting of the film, and justify spending more than one more round with this Panda.