“Kung Fu Panda 4”, the newest addition to a beloved franchise: is it worth going to watch in theaters? Well, let’s say we should wait for the movie to come out streaming. 

“Kung Fu Panda 4” was released and gained $58 million at opening weekend box offices, but it failed to be as charming, heartful, and enjoyable as its predecessors. As a viewer wrote online, “This movie pales in comparison to the other three before it. “ Then they continue saying, “It is a decent film on its own, but is an insult to truly how great it could be and how amazing the other films were, and certainly is not the right direction to take the series if this goes forward.”

Without spoilers, the plot itself was centered around change. It was a very heartfelt message showing that people changing isn’t a bad thing, which can leave viewers with some warmth while leaving the theaters. 

The message was nice, but the plot itself was very fast-paced, and some things weren’t as impactful at the end. There wasn’t a moment to breathe, they just jumped from one thing to the next. This could have been appealing to younger generations and the fast scrolling social media like TikTok. 

The movie lacked many things that made the last movies so loved, such as having deeper messages for the plot which explained why a character is the way they are. While the message itself was heartful, the plot wasn’t. The movie was just mediocre compared to the other past movies, as there was some poor writing about the characters and plot.

Then we have the adored main character, Po, voiced by Jack Black. Black voiced Po in the other Kung Fu Panda movies, which all were highly received by audiences. Black voiced and played Po as hilariously as the other movies. 

The only difference is that this time, Po was wiser and calmer now, showing his evolution through the movies, but still desperate to prove himself capable, which reverses some of that development. There are still some heartfelt moments with Po, especially when he is the mentor now. 

Which leads us to Zhen, played by Awkwafina, a quick-witted fox thief who becomes Po’s companion. Awkwafina is a controversial actor. She played in movies like Crazy Rich Asians and Shang-Chi, where she was criticized for her acting skills and as criticism in the press and on social media that she used a “blaccent,” or black accent in her movies, which may have contributed to an irritating viewing experience. 

However, Zhen herself, complements Po by being someone he can become a mentor to and helps show change in the character we’ve grown to watch, but she can become annoying to watch on screen. Some actions on screen felt forced and rushed, which can be blamed on poor writing. 

The animation may have been the best part of this movie. It was created beautifully and really drew the attention of the audience. The colors were bright but complemented the scenes and plot so well. During the action scenes as well, the animation was able to follow all the action and create tension the audience could feel.

The soundtrack was also very well done. They used iconic sounds and music from the past movies to bring some nostalgia into the new one, but they also had new music to bring in younger generations to watch. 

It brought excitement to some scenes but also helped the animation with creating suspense or even fear for the characters on screen that the audience can feel. 

IMBD gave this movie a 3.5/5 stars and I would give the same because this movie did have some nice laughs and scenes that were emotional, which can help make it an enjoyable viewing experience. However, it was very lacking in things that made the originals so loved, and the movie was very fast-paced, which made character and plot developments unbelievable. 

The movie is a fun and nice watch, but save your money and wait for it to come out on streaming services.