Week one

Time is truly fleeting as this first week has flown by. Granted, one day was lost to travel, and four others were shared with my niece, but I honestly have no time where the time has gone.

Saw Kung Fu Panda. Not that great. Oh sure, your kids will no doubt like it, but for those of us who, thanks to Pixar, have come to expect more from computer animated films, this one just isn't all there. The animation seems very flat, especially the characters eyes, and at times uninspired.

And one of the things that bugged me most is how they touted this having this great cast (Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Seth Rogan, David Cross, Jackie Chan, and Dustin Hoffman), and you never really get a chance to hear from the other actors aside from Black and Hoffman. Aside from one scene with Jolie in it, all the other actors make little more than cameos in the film.

It strikes me that this is one of those films that has to do well just to justify the paychecks they had to shell out to get these stars to lend their voices for a couple of lines worth of work. Dreamworks Animation seems to follow an idea that if they book big name stars, people will come, whereas Pixar focuses on quality story and animation.

And Dreamworks wonders why Pixar is crushing them.

It is worth noting that I am not a fan of Jack Black. Never have been. All of his films, to me, seem to serve the same purpose, proving how great he thinks he is. Kung Fu Panda is no exception.