Reviews of DreamWorks’ June 6th offering are pouring in following Kung Fu Panda‘s world premiere Thursday in Cannes. Kirk Honeycutt at the Hollywood Reporter calls the film “a martial arts masterpiece” (the stunning fight sequences in the film were choreographed by animation veteran Rodolphe Guenoden), adding that “although it’s aimed primarily at youngsters, Kung Fu Panda embraces humor that plays well across age groups and nationalities. Certainly the sustained applause at its Cannes Film Festival world premiere here bodes well for international box office success.” Meanwhile, Variety‘s Todd McCarthy was less thrilled with the film which he describes as “a nice looking but heavily formulaic DreamWorks animation entry,” as was Lou Lumenick’s NY Post who found the film “very conventional and (…) aimed strictly at kids.” However Time calls it “cunning visual art and ultra-satisfying entertainment” and IGN a “delightful family film.” Cinematical gives the film polite applause, noting that “Kung Fu Panda may be on the higher edge of the middle rank of computer-animated films, but it’ll still provide your kids with a fairly respectable mix of action, amazement and amusement.” Britain’s Screen International rounds up the reviews describing Kung Fu Panda as “warm and very likable Hollywood fare.”
Positive buzz on Kung Fu Panda coming out of Cannes