Cinema 2011 #55: Kung Fu Panda 2

Kung Fu Panda was something of a surprise hit back in 2008, with very few industry insiders expecting the kiddie-friendly story of an American-sounding martial-artistic bear in a cutesy critter China to become the 50th top grossing film of all time. And yet, against the odds, Po the panda’s quest for self-fulfillment struck a gong with audiences everywhere, especially in China, where its Sino-styled riffs on Asian legends and kung-fu cinema went down a treat. And in one fell chop, DreamWorks established a new franchise to rival Pixar’s dominance of the computer animated cartoon.