Kung Fu Panda 2

Another week, another 3D cinema flick. This time, it's Kung Fu Panda 2, the first of this year's threesome of animated twoquels (to soon be followed by 2nd outings for Cars and Happy Feet).

In the last film, Po the Panda (Jack Black) defied all expectations to prove himself as the heroic Dragon Warrior. Now, he and his kung fu comrades, the Furious Five, spend their time training with Master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman) and fighting the most evil of villains.

Among the most evil villains is the white peacock Lord Shen (Gary Oldman). He and his army of wolves have just invented the cannon and will use it to take over the world. Unbeknownst to Po, Shen has already figured into his fuzzy childhood and the only way Po can stop him is by finding his inner peace.

Its animated cinematography has greatly improved from the original even without the 3D. It shows it off greatly in its flashbacks to Po's past by telling them in stylish cel-shaded animation. Its fight scenes have also gotten bigger for the better; among the highlights are the heroes' ingenious espionage into Shen's stronghold by dragon costume.

Amongst the animated cast, the best one is the goat Soothsayer (Michelle Yeoh). Her unique sense of humor makes her interactions with the deathly serious Shen fun to watch. Returning cast member Mr. Ping (James Hong) is also a highlight, as is his adopted son Po himself. And Shen, meanwhile, makes for a formidable sequel adversary.

If there's any flaw here, it's that its 90-minute plot runs a bit too fast. But since it's still comprehensible, its not much of an issue for me. Overall, Kung Fu Panda 2 is a sequel that's definitely worth the wait.

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

Just when you thought that Johnny Depp's alter-ego Captain Jack Sparrow had sailed for the last time, it turns out he hadn't. With new director Rob Marshall, the wily rogue has returned for a new Pirates of the Caribbean adventure, subtitled On Stranger Tides, which is the first of them to be in 3D.

This time, Captain Jack's eye has turned towards the Fountain of Youth. He has a map to it, which is why King George wanted him to guide a royal expedition. He evades conscripment, but he gets unwillingly inducted into the crew of the infamous Blackbeard (Ian McShane). His daughter Angelica (Penelope Cruz) used to be real close to Captain Jack, and probably still is now. Whether Captain Jack likes it or not, they too want him to guide them to the Fountain before anyone else finds it.

At 137 minutes, this is significantly shorter than the last entry, At Worlds End. Yet, this entry doesn't stand out that much amongst its predecessors. Its action scenes are nice, but nothing special, and the plot around them is a tad too convoluted. The bright spot here was that I saw the flatscreen version.

The makeup department, meanwhile, deserves the most attention for the Oscars. They've put in so much effort in making the actors into such characters as the pirates, nobles, and zombie ship-hands. Their work is so good it's even allowed Judi Dench to slip by unnoticed in an amusing cameo.

If not for Captain Jack being reliably quirky, this installment would've sunk badly. Instead, this should make for an OK time-waster for a matinee at the movies.

Thor

Next summer, Marvel will bring a bunch of its heroes together for a cinematic adventure called The Avengers. This summer, one of The Avengers, Thor, gets to have his own cinematic adventure.

It starts by explaining how Odin (Anthony Hopkins) and his fellow warriors of Asgard vanquished the evil Frost Giants back to their home realm of Jotunheim. Years later, Odin is about to make his son Thor (Chris Hemsworth) the new king of Asgard when some Frost Giants are caught sneaking in. Against Odin's orders, Thor picks a fight with the Giants.

Since this has struck a blow against Giant/Asgard relations, Odin takes away Thor's godhood and sends him to New Mexico. There, an intrepid trio of scientists, led by Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), makes Thor their new friend. Thor eventually adjusts to Earth, but he has to get his powers back so he can thwart the scheming of his evil brother, Loki (Tom Hiddleston).

Available as both a 3D and a flatscreen attraction, Thor is simply a fun blockbuster. As Thor, Chris Hemsworth makes for a perfect boisterous bruiser brought down to Earth. Thor's Asgardian sidekicks, led by Joshua Dallas and Ray Stevenson, provide the film with many humorous moments. Plenty of cool visual moments, such as the Asgardian sentry The Destroyer, highlight the film.

Under the direction of Kenneth Branagh, both spectacle and story have found a good balance. It neither drowns in a sea of CGI, nor does it waste time preparing for The Avengers. For those unfamiliar with Marvel's take on Norse Mythology, Thor's a good place to start.