Mike Mitchell’s Kung Fu Panda 4 is all set to hit the global theatres with the continuation of the adventures of Jack Black’s Po. While The Dragon Warrior Po is the star of the show, several other characters have made a prominent buzz including Viola Davis’ The Chameleon.
Davis’ character in the movie— a wicked shape-shifting sorceress that can copy the abilities of others by absorbing their prowess, quite adjacent to the trait of the name itself— was very hard to create. But the animators have nailed it. This might make you wonder what Marvel is doing in this regard.
How Kung Fu Panda 4 Achieved The Astounding Animation?
Mike Mitchell excelled with his visionary approach to extending the universe of Kung Fu Panda starring Jack Black with the latest installment. Animated movies are tricky as the animators have to go through multiple revisions. Speaking with Collider, Mitchell explained how they have achieved the engrossing animation. “It seems like the biggest thing was, um, just building upon our villain for the most part,” the director reflected on Viola Davis’ character. “We really, this, I think this is one of the best franchises ever in any animated film,” he said. “And I think the reason it’s so great, one is Jack Black clearly,” he continued adding that the villains in the franchise have made it glorious.
“When it came along with this and we found the voice and we had the design of the chameleon and she could shape shift and all these things this is something early on where we’re like okay at the end of this movie. [Spoiler alert], So, for the end we’re like okay she could shift into anything is she going to shift into a whole bunch of animals that Po fights which would be fascinating and we always compared it to Sword and the Stone… We had a design started for that or is he going to transfer into himself which is also kind of a really cool trope to mess with Po’s head and turn into himself and at the end of the day, and we kept trying each one of these and they were all better than the next and at the end of the day we’re like let’s do it all.”
Understandably, it was not fun for the producers, as they were in awe of seeing the cost climbing upwards. Still, the makers have made it through continuing the streak and legacy of the popular action-comedy franchise.
Kung Fu Panda 4 CGI Is Ahead Of Several Marvel Projects
It was painstaking, indeed, Mitchell is candid about revealing the hard work the team had to endure but it came to fruition eventually. “The transformation scenes when every time she transformed into something,” he told Collider adding more insight to the scene of the villain.
“The Chameleon retains her lizard skin even though she’s turning into a furry snow leopard. The snow leopard’s not furry, it’s her creepy lizard skin in the shape of a snow leopard so that was something we knew was going to be a pain and we started that early.”
Looking at the cinematic mastery through CGI in the movie, the name of Marvel Studios pops right in as the MCU projects often face scrutiny over the integration of CGI in their movies and shows. Of course, MCU projects demand extensive use of CGI yet they gasp despite spending big bucks. CGI technology has gotten so far, reaching a remarkable height, and seeing a similar approach to representing their universe is getting old, at least many critics and fans would agree with that.
From the unrealistic Egyptian jackal rising from the ground in Moon Knight to Ms. Marvel’s villains crumbling into cartoonish skeletons and Doctor Strange’s bizarre third eye, not to mention the entire She-Hulk: Attorney at Law season has repeatedly faced a similar fate. Will Marvel upgrade the VFX to create a spectacle? It is a long road, the criticism goes beyond the considerably poor VFX but rather the alleged work environment in the studio.
Kung Fu Panda 4 is currently showing in theaters.
