Film review: Kung Fu Panda 2

NOT the most exciting of movie titles, is it? But it does deliver on its promise: this is indeed a sequel containing an ursine martial artist – Dreamworks could only be more blunt about their product if they had called it "Movie For The Long Summer Holidays Which Allows You All To Get Out Of The House And Not Talk For 90 Minutes". And brace yourselves because, despite the 2008 film appearing to wrap up the character arc of its portly, dumpling-loving mammal by having him finally become a fighting machine, there are at least four more pandacentric escapades in the pipeline. After all, despite reaching a happy ever after in its first outing, the same studio managed to wring three more flatulent fairytales out of Shrek.

So in this follow-up, Po (Jack Black) usefully develops some contingent issues, and the main one is his sudden realisation that Mr Ping (James Hong), whom he has long regarded as his father, is not in fact his biological parent. Since Mr Ping is a goose, this may not be a plot twist that has Rod Serling weeping with envy, but when you are watching a film where animals talk and wear kimonos, it's also not the biggest challenge to your credulity.

Meanwhile, the Valley of Peace is threatened by a panda-hating albino peacock named Lord Shen (Gary Oldman). Hot on Shen's tailfeathers are many of the original cast, including the Furious Five fighting team of Tigress (Angelina Jolie), Monkey (Jackie Chan), Viper (Lucy Liu), Mantis (Seth Rogen), and Crane (David Cross), plus Dustin Hoffman as Master Shifu, the red panda who is Po's martial arts master.

New additions to this biodiversity includes Jean-Claude Van Damme as past-it "Master Croc," and Michelle Yeoh as an elderly fortune-telling goat, although none of them seems to get to do very much. Still, at least there's some attempt to move the story on, rather than simply reprise the highlights of the first film again. Did we say The Hangover Part II could come out of the dunce's corner yet? Kung Fu Panda 2's storytelling advances are not major ones but at least Jackie Chan gets to say more than "yes" this time round, while Tigress seems to be advancing romantically on Po in a very forward "lock up yer pandas" Jolie manner; and by the end of the film, there's a clear signal that this panda series is in no danger of extinction with a last-minute revelation regarding Po's origins.

Kung Fu Panda 2 lacks the original's freshness and sense of discovery but it does offer some visual feasts, from the nuances of fur and feathers to its delicate Eastern landscapes and shadow puppet effects, directed by Jennifer Yuh Nelson, who oversaw the elegant opening sequences from the first film.

Kids should also enjoy Po racing around China trying to save the day in a series of bold action sequences. For a movie which quacks on about serenity and peace, this film does like its staged battles.

Like all of Dreamworks' animations since 2010, Kung Fu Panda 2 requires you to pay the 3D premium rate, chiefly to get the full effect of a panda spitting out 40 dumplings. Even so, there's a lingering sense that Po and Co are finally getting a bit flat.

On general release from Friday

This article was originally published in Scotland on Sunday on June 5th 2011