Kung Fu Panda 4 was unmistakably a cash grab. When I walked into the theater, there were only two other families in there and no one else walked in throughout the entire film. While it wasn’t the worst movie in the world, it most definitely wasn’t the best. There was no need for it to be made in the first place. The best word to describe it would be mid.
The movie held a lot of life lessons and parallels which was a really good addition, especially given that Kung Fu Panda is generally steered towards kids. It also had a lot of comedy, too much comedy. There were plenty of funny jokes, but it came to a point where the movie itself became a joke. There was rarely any action, no thrill, no moments to leave you on the edge of your seat, and no high stakes in general which is what almost every movie should have. It was very underwhelming.
The plot was easily predictable starting from the beginning when Po, voiced by Jack Black, met a sly fox, Zhen, voiced by Awkafina. Major plot points like when Po taught Zhen how to use the staff, when Zhen revealed her history, and so many more aspects made it seem like I was always one step ahead of what the movie and its plot were.
The final battle was also underwhelming. It was short and maybe if they had more time it could have been better. The villain, The Chameleon, voiced by Viola Davis, was intimidating at first, proving she had the potential to be a good character. Additionally, when we first heard of her using her shapeshifting sorcery abilities to impersonate one of Po’s biggest arch nemesis, Tai Lung, it seemed like she would be a great villain.
Especially with her actual introduction scene where we learned what she could really do. But after that, all of her scenes until the final fight were bland, making her seem more of a textbook antagonist rather than a villain.
As mentioned before, an exceptional part of the movie was the life lessons and the parallels. One of the most obvious ones is about how change is good and should be accepted. Po’s parents, Mr. Ping and Li Shan try to console Po about how change is a good thing and shouldn’t necessarily be feared. On the other hand, we’re met with a scene of The Chameleon talking to Zhen about change. Rather than having a positive perspective on it, she tells Zhen that change is bad and she shouldn’t do it which is contradicting and hypocritical to her character considering change is all she does.
The direction of the movie was unclear and doesn’t really stand out throughout the film. As stated earlier, it was an obvious cash grab and bait for nostalgia, bringing in old fans. The Kung Fu Panda trilogy did not need to go anywhere further than what it had already. It’s sad that a company like Dreamworks has really lost its touch as the years went on.
