Blu-ray Movie Reviews

Po (voiced by Jack Black) is an enthusiastic panda who works in his family's noodle shop while daydreaming about becoming a Kung Fu master. His dreams are soon realized when he is unexpectedly chosen to study the martial arts alongside his idols—the legendary fighters Tigress (Angelina Jolie), Crane (David Cross), Mantis (Seth Rogen), Viper (Lucy Liu), and Monkey (Jackie Chan)—under the leadership of their guru, Master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman). Before they know it, the vengeful and treacherous snow leopard Tai Lung (Ian McShane) returns, and it's up to Po to defend everyone from the oncoming threat.

Kung Fu Panda is a fun family film that delivers a great message to kids—believe in yourself and you can accomplish your dreams. The story moves along at a crisp pace, and the fight scenes are spectacular, especially Tai Lung's escape from prison and the food fight between Po and Master Shifu.

Animated titles on Blu-ray generally look outstanding, especially the Pixar hits Cars and Ratatouille, but there's a new sheriff in town with Kung Fu Panda. This meticulous presentation is delivered with breathtaking realism and three-dimensional clarity. The AVC encode reveals every nuance and detail—whether in Po's bulging midriff or each individual scale on Viper's slithery form. The colors leap from the screen with vivid hues of red and blue. Can it get any better than this?

The Dolby TrueHD 5.1 soundtrack is active and enveloping in its delivery, with an expansive dynamic range, crisp highs, and chest-pounding bass. Dialog is delivered with perfect clarity and precision and is firmly rooted in the center. Discrete effects come at you from every direction, especially the surround channels. But what really sets this soundtrack apart is the quieter passages, such as a cricket singing in the background or the breeze rustling through the trees—very cool indeed.

The bonus features have enough meat to feed an overweight panda for weeks—or keep the kids in front of the TV for the same amount of time! The BD-Live disc contains a plethora of HD goodies, such as behind-the-scenes featurettes on the production, a look (and listen) at the sound design, a tutorial on drawing, a video jukebox, trailers, and two online features—"A Day in the Life: A Shaolin Monk in Training" and "Po Around the World." Not only are the supplements fun and entertaining, they're also educational with a piece from Conservation International on saving wild pandas.

If you have kids, they're the perfect excuse for picking this one up. If you don't, lie and say you do—every home-theater enthusiast should own this disc. The video encode is perfect in every way, and the audio delivers its own knock-out punch. Highly recommended!

Release Date: November 9, 2008

Movie: 8/10
Picture: 10/10
Sound: 10/10

Review System

Source
Panasonic DMP-BD55

Display
JVC DLA-RS1 projector
Stewart FireHawk screen (76.5" wide, 16:9)

Electronics
Onkyo Pro 85 pre/pro
Anthem PVA-7 Amplifier
Belkin PF60 power conditioner

Speakers
M&K S-150s (L, C, R)
M&K SS-150s (LS, RS, SBL, SBR)
SVS PC-Ultra subwoofer

Cables
Monoprice HDMI cables (source to pre/pro)
Best Deal analog-audio cables
PureLink HDC Fiber Optic HDMI Cable System (15 meters) from pre/pro to projector