Opened: June 6, 2008

Directed by: John Stevenson & Mark Osborne

Starring: Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Randall Duk Kim, Ian McShane, Angelina Jolie, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, David Cross, Jackie Chan, James Hong, Dan Fogler & Michael Clarke Duncan

Though it doesn’t surpass the likes of Shrek, DreamWorks successfully starts another franchise with Kung Fu Panda.

When Master Oogway (Randall Duk Kim) chooses the Dragon Warrior, no one is more surprised than the choice himself, Po (Jack Black). He begins lessons with the skeptic Master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman) but must prepare quickly as the evil Tai Lung (Ian McShane) has escaped from prison.

Po is an instantly lovable character and Black expertly voices him. And while the rest of the characters are voiced by an all-star cast, Duk Kim and James Hong are the standouts with the latter playing PO’s adoptive father Mr. Ping.

The animation brilliantly shows the techniques of martial arts with the Furious Five paying homage to actual styles of Chinese martial arts.

Final say: Everybody will be kung fu fighting. ★★★★☆