Kung Fu Panda 4 falls short with recycled jokes, lackluster screenwriting

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I told a friend I was seeing “Kung Fu Panda 4” this weekend at the theater and the friend responded, “Wait, there’s four of them?”

I think that basically sums up my point.

Kung Fu Panda 4 came out earlier this month, bringing back the beloved Jack Black as Po, the panda bear. Directed by Mike Mitchell and with a budget of $85M, the movie is the fourth installment of the “Kung Fu Panda” franchise.

The original “Kung Fu Panda” movie is a classic for DreamWorks enjoyers – the story follows a dumpling-loving, dumpling-shaped panda named Po who works in a noodle shop with his adoptive goose father. Po dreams of meeting his kung fu heroes, “the Furious Five.”

Despite his lazy, goofy and somewhat clumsy demeanor, Po was flung into the world of becoming a kung fu legend, known as the “Dragon Warrior.” He was the only kung fu master that could defeat the notoriously evil Tai Lung.

The fourth movie circles back to Tai Lung as Po is comfortable in his Dragon Warrior role, having fought several villains throughout the past three stories. Now, he must retire from the position and find a worthy successor, but plans are foiled when a new villain, “The Chameleon,” appears.

From a generic standpoint, the film contains all of what Kung Fu Panda lovers long for – action-packed sequences, an engaging soundtrack and proverbs. Well, actually, there might have been too many proverbs.

Unfortunately, the screenwriting feels full of recycled jokes and inconsistent pacing. In general, the best movie writing is done through “show don’t tell,” but in this film, the viewer is force-fed the plot in the first 10 minutes. It is difficult to keep up with how fast the characters move through the story, and they often say exactly what is happening on-screen.

Most of the actual comedy is fairly repetitive as well. It focuses too much on set-ups and pay-offs, never satisfying older viewers with “adult” jokes as in past movies.

Fernanda Kligerman | Design Editor

Another form of recycled jokes that had me itching in my seat was the bit about proverbs. As he must give up his Dragon Warrior job to become the spiritual leader of the Valley of Peace, Po complains he isn’t wise enough to be the next Grand Master Oogway. He lacks Oogway’s ability to create inspiring proverbs at the appropriate times.

So they repeat countless proverbs that, while accurately pertaining to Po’s interests (noodles, dumplings, etc.), aren’t that amusing after all.

One of the real times I giggled was when Po farted trying to get through the sleeping guards and they all came after them. But even then, that joke was spoiled in the movie’s trailer.

And yes, fart jokes are funny! I am tired of pretending they’re not.

Let’s talk more about this “The Chameleon.” She’s a shape-shifting, two-and-a-half-foot demon. She dreams of becoming the empress sorceress of Juniper City after everyone underestimates her height. To do so, she must control the entire spirit realm and become the greatest kung fu warrior the world has ever seen – but her arc is relatively shallow.

After all, one of the best things about “Kung Fu Panda” is usually the depth of its villains and the lessons learned from their pain. For example, Kung Fu Panda 2’s villain Lord Shen reveals he struggles to find peace after pain in his final fight with Po. The viewer learns to let go of the past through Po’s advice, even if Shen does not take it himself.

However, all we learn from The Chameleon is back-handed “rules of the streets” – such as, “nobody cares about your feelings.”

Yikes.

And so this The Chameleon steals Po’s “Staff of Wisdom,” with the help of the fox Zhen, voiced by Awkwafina (who probably would have had better jokes for this movie if they were written by her). It is with the staff that The Chameleon summons Tai Lung, our favorite nefarious snow leopard previously defeated in the first film.

With this, The Chameleon can challenge Po alongside his other enemies by taking their spirits and channeling them into her own, so that she may shape-shift into any kung fu fighter she wants. Po defeats her and returns home to the Valley of Peace, where he accepts having to become the spiritual leader and trains Zhen to become the next Dragon Warrior.

Anyone could see that coming from the second Zhen and Po teamed up. At least we get the iconic Tai Lung back (though he practically compliments Po in a completely out-of-character manner) and also the Furious Five…for a few seconds.

While this movie was atrocious, I still enjoyed watching beloved characters on-screen. The end featured a moment in which all of Po’s past enemies showed respect toward his kung fu abilities. This proved that even a fluffy fat panda cannot be underestimated, a satisfying end to a theme milked thoroughly in the other movies.

Seriously, though, it isn’t all that bad. There’s a fart joke, for one, and you still will always root for the once-noodle-shop-worker-turned-Dragon-Warrior’s efforts in keeping the Valley of Peace… well… peaceful.

Overall, the relatively predictable fourth act shows there isn’t much “skadoosh” left in this franchise, and I think it is OK to say goodbye to Black’s beloved panda bear. We got the best out of him, but it should stop now before we get the worst too. As Po says in this film, “you can’t have your moon cake and eat it too.”

Yes, that’s one of the garbage proverbs they came up with.