Product Description

Genre: Family
Rating: PG
Release Date: 9-NOV-2008
Media Type: DVD

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #12781 in DVD
• Brand: Unknown
• Released on: 2008-11-08
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, French, Spanish
• Dubbed in: French, Spanish
• Number of discs: 2
• Dimensions: 1.20 pounds
• Running time: 112 minutes

Amazon.com
What's a panda to do when his dreams of kung-fu awesomeness awake to the cold reality of noodle-making? Clumsy, overweight Po (Jack Black) dreams of becoming a kung fu master like China's revered "furious five," but instead seems destined to follow in the footsteps of his father and grandfather in the restaurant business. When great leader Oogway has a vision that the imprisoned kung fu warrior Tai Lung (Ian McShane) will soon escape, he declares it time to choose China's dragon warrior--one kung fu master deemed worthy of possessing the dragon's scroll and its secret to limitless power. Po and all the townspeople rush to the Jade Palace atop the highest mountain to witness the contest between Tigress (Angelina Jolie), Monkey (Jackie Chan), Mantis (Seth Rogan), Crane (David Cross) and Viper (Lucy Liu), but Po is locked outside the palace. After a miracle of sorts, Po lands inside the palace gates, where he is chosen as the dragon warrior and placed under the tutelage of the decidedly non-plussed master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman). An unconventional student to say the least, hilarity reigns as Shifu tries desperately to make Po into some semblance of a kung fu warrior. Can Po possibly fulfill his destiny as dragon warrior, or was Oogway's final decision a critical mistake? A film rich with hilarious moments, superior animation, and an important message about believing in oneself and the power that comes from within, Kung Fu Panda is great entertainment that will have the whole family laughing and begging for more. (Ages 3 and older) --Tami Horiuchi




Stills from Kung Fu Panda (Click for larger image)

On the DVD
The Kung Fu Panda fun continues in the bonus Secrets of the Furious Five DVD which features a 24-minute, animated mini-movie starring an uncomfortable Po who's been thrust into the role of teacher of Introductory Kung Fu. Po struggles to gain the attention and respect of his young bunny students in his uniquely inept way and soon discovers that highlighting key moments in each of the Furious Five's lives is a an effective way of teaching his students about the virtues inherent in successful Kung Fu. While Po's class may not be as controlled as Master Shifu would like, his students learn important lessons about patience, courage, discipline, compassion, and confidence. Additional bonus features include "Po's Power Play" in which viewers can learn to draw Po under the tutelage of Po's animator James Baxter or follow narrated instructions and an animated drawing board to create Crane, Tigress, Viper, Mantis, and Monkey. It also includes a "Dumpling Shuffle" game and CD-ROM access to a host of other activities like sound machine, printables, and video game demos. The "Land of the Panda" option features a lesson on doing the panda dance, examples of the 6 basic styles of Kung Fu, and an interactive "Inside the Chinese Zodiac" which lets viewers discover their Chinese zodiac sign and the basic characteristics associated with it. Finally, "Animals of Kung Fu Panda" is a six-minute segment about the history of Kung Fu that describes how animals are the basis for the various styles of fighting. The bonus Secrets of the Furious Five DVD is a fun companion to the film that's well worth the small additional cost. --Tami Horiuchi

Customer Reviews

Two Thumbs Up for Panda, Not So Much For Furious Five
The Furious Five movie is only 22 minutes long, so it's not really worth it to pay the extra $7. Stick with the single disc version and you'll be getting a lot more for your money.

Keep the Panda, Lose the Five
I've got no issues with the feature film; it was just as good when I saw it in the theatres twice. But the Furious Five add-on is just a waste of time and money. It is about 30 minutes of backstory on the Furious Five as it explains how they came to study under Master Shifu. There are also some live-action demonstrations of their various fighting styles and a test to discover which kung fu style you are, but all in all it's just a waste. Get the movie only, save your money.

Furious Five only OK
The Furious Five disk was a bit of a letdown. Much of the animation in the featurette (not a full blown feature) was not the usual high quality animation. Flashbacks were told in a different style of animation. Just not up to expectations of the main movie. Also, even if you get the fullscreen version of Kung Fu Panda, it seems as though the Furious Five disk is in widescreen (at least mine was). And, I should add that the price on Amazon.com was NOT as good as other places on the release date.