Review: ‘Kung Fu Panda 3’ provides another round of anthropomorphic kung fu

Posted on February 5, 2016

By MARK VIOLA

I tend to hold family movies, especially animated films, to just as high a standard as I do other movies. There is no reason to pander to kids and, as long as the story and themes are age appropriate, you can make a great film that all ages can enjoy. Pixar has been doing just that for years. Dreamworks Animation has been hit or miss with this, exceeding quite well with its “How to Train Your Dragon” series, and did quite well with the original “Kung Fu Panda” movie.

I was less pleased with “Kung Fu Panda 2,” which suffered from a variety of problems, but the most critical was a lack of emotional heft. So, does the third film in the franchise solve those problems?

For the most part, it does. Many of the issues affecting the action and pacing are corrected, but the emotional resonance we had in the first film still isn’t quite there.

That being said, this is a good movie and one that will surely entertain audiences, young and old, with beautiful animation, fun and inventive action sequences and the return of our favorite anthropomorphic kung fu fighters.

Could “Kung Fu Panda 3” have been a better movie? Easily. But it is still a good one and, even with holding it to higher standard than some, I found plenty to enjoy here and families should as well.

The film is rated PG for martial arts action and some mild rude humor.

(This is a abbreviated version of the full review available in our printed or e-edition papers.)

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