Some images from DreamWorks Animation's upcoming summer flick Kung Fu Panda have surfaced at Film Web. Most of them will be familiar to anyone following this flick, but there are a couple of new ones, including some great shots of the white tiger Tai Lung. You can check out the gallery by clicking here, and then clicking on the link called "zobacz cata galerie."
Will Kung Fu Panda Live Up to Its Promise?
Kung Fu Panda looks like it has serious possibilities for comedy and martial arts mayhem, despite a less-than-stellar initial poster. On the other hand, the first trailer brought the funny.
It helps that this writer is a major fan of kung fu flicks, especially Stephen Chow's flicks like Shaolin Soccer and Kung Fu Hustle. Certainly Kung Fu Panda looks really good, animation wise. DreamWorks has a lot of great talent in their animation department.
It features an all-star cast, with Jack Black (as Po the titular Panda), Dustin Hoffman (Shifu), Jackie Chan (Master Monkey), Lucy Liu (Master Viper), Angelina Jolie (Master Tigress), Knocked Up's Seth Rogen (Master Mantis), Michael Clarke Duncan (Commander Vachir) and Deadwood's Ian McShane as the villainous Tai Lung.
However, packing big stars into a voice cast can be a double-edged sword: good voices do make for a better movie. But such stars command large salaries, which drives up a movie's costs. And they don't guarantee a box office bonanza.
Part of the problem is that voice acting takes many stars away from what they're most famous for. Fans of Jackie Chan want to see him do his own stunts, not speak. Angelina Jolie is also better known for her . . . physical assets. Paramount's Beowulf sidestepped that issue by essentially rendering Jolie in motion capture nudity, but that movie didn't even make $100 million in North American box office.
DreamWorks' 2007: Shrek Hit, Bee Movie Missed
DreamWorks is also coming off a mixed 2007. Shrek the Third was a massive success, making more money at the domestic box office than Disney/Pixar's Ratatouille and Sony's Surf's Up combined. However, Bee Movie joined a long line of non-Shrek DreamWorks animated flicks that failed to crack the coveted $200 million mark, despite an intensive ad campaign and the presence of Jerry Seinfeld, Oprah Winfrey and Renée Zellweger in the cast. In fact, the flick made $124 million in domestic box office, not enough to cover its $150 million costs (not including promo).
Shrek the Third had issues as well. I certainly made a ton of money at the box office, but didn't get a lot of love from critics, with many suggesting the film franchise had jumped the shark.
Can Kung Fu Panda become the first non-Shrek DreamWorks flick to break $200 million? Find out when it bows June 6th.
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