Kung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Furious Five (2008 Video) User Reviews

Enjoyable sequel short film

[Horst_In_Translation · 6/10 · 6 April 2015]

"Kung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Furious Five" is a short film that runs for slightly over 20 minutes and came out a couple months after the very first "Kung Fu Panda" back in 2008, probably as a DVD feature. Since then there is a second movie, several other short films and even a television series. The third feature movie will come out in 2016. In this short here, Po tells us and a class of rabbits 5 little stories about Kung Fu masters. It's really more about morale than comedy although here and there you find some slapstick. It's certainly suitable for children and especially those who enjoy the movies should like it too. My favorite from the stories is the second one about the snakes (maybe an 8/10) as it perfectly illustrates the biological aspects of venomous and constrictor snakes and I quite liked the way they displayed it with all these bands.

The director Raman Hui has worked on quite a few animated movies and was the co-director of the third "Shrek" movie. The animation style in this "Kung Fu Panda" short is very similar to the full length movies. What I also found interesting were the different animal motives in the sequences, such as sheep for helpless and intimidated animals and crocodiles and bulls for antagonists. There's probably more. This one here won 4 Annie Awards (animation Oscars) and I can see why. I had a good time watching and I recommend it.

educational and fun for the kids,entertaining enough for the adults

[disdressed12 · 6/10 · 27 December 2008]

this is a short animated film dealing of course,with the furious five,from original Kung Fu Panda movie.i thought it was OK.it has some great lessons for kids,and it's kinda cute,especially the bunnies.minor spoiler****it's really a bunch of mini stories about the past of each of the furious five,in which each one learned a very important virtue.each member gets around five or six minutes each.***end of spoiler.anyway,this little short is fun and easy to watch for the kids,and entertaining enough for the grownups.they got quite a bit of info into the short running time,and none of the characters gets short changed in terms of screen time and story.for me,Kung Fu Panda:Secrets of the Furious Five is a 6/10

good

[mohamedkarem-93392 · 6/10 · 27 November 2019]

This short film added to the story as a whole , however , the animation was quite raw , it's good for a short film , but still , it's a big studio .. I expected more .

An entertaining celebration of great virtues

[Gordon-11 · 10 November 2008]

This short animation is about Master Po teaching Kung Fu to a group of young bunnies.

I am positively surprised by this short. It tells the story of each of the Furious Five, and a virtue that each has learned through Kung Fu. Each story is fun and inspiring in a unique way. It teaches great virtues of human beings in an entertaining way, without being preachy.

The animation is great, especially the bunnies who are so cute and cuddly! I am also impressed that all the Chinese characters in the film are all correct. Usually Chinese characters in animations are simply jumbled up strokes.

There is a lot of positivity in "Kung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Furious Five". I really enjoyed watching it.

Furious Five Virtues

[Prismark10 · 6/10 · 1 January 2014]

This is an animation short that ties in with the first Kung Fu Panda films with Po the panda ropes in by Shifu to teach the philosophy of Kung Fu to a group of young bunnies at a martial arts school.

However it is not the crash bang wallop of Kung Fu that Po teaches but the positive traits that each of the Furious Five developed.

So you have flashbacks of the Furious Five and how they developed their skills and the virtues they developed. It avoids preachiness and younger viewers would be highly entertained.

The animation is very good and up to feature film standard and they have attracted an all star cast for the voices.

Not Bad

[jack_o_hasanov_imdb · 7/10 · 28 August 2021]

Since I was fat during my school years, this animation gave me motivation. Panda's short film. It was fun.

Not as inspiring as the original, but a very entertaining short for KFP fans

[gavin-lordofthefutur-776-426631 · 9/10 · 3 December 2013]

The original film, despite it's silly ending, was at least one of DreamWorks Animation's stronger films with great characters, excellent Kung Fu action sequences, a compelling story, beautiful animation, and an epic music score from Hans Zimmer and John Powell. So, when I saw this short that continues where the first Kung Fu Panda left off, I thought it wouldn't be as good as the film. It turns out that it's a very entertaining short, although it doesn't have the same inspiring message that made it very solid.

The story, while explaining the back-stories of the Furious Five really well, is a tad predictable in some parts; the humor isn't as strong as the movie and I expected it to be a bit longer like say 40 minutes so that it can explain the back-stories better. That's all I have to say about the flaws.

Everything else is great. The CGI is fine, but it's traditional animation sequences of the Furious Five's backstories is what made this worth watching for me. It's so beautiful and the character designs from the movie are nicely detailed here. The voice acting is pretty good and although we only saw Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, and David Cross return, the voice actors for only four of the Furious Five including Tara Strong, Max Koch, Jessica DiCicco, and James Sie (Jackie from Jackie Chan Adventures) did a good job. The music score from Hans Zimmer, & John Powell (along with Henry Jackman), does retain the same tunes from the movie while using a lot of different stuff in it, which isn't a bad thing. The characters are still as likable as they were especially the young Furious Five warriors.

Overall, Secrets of the Furious Five isn't as inspiring as the original film, but it proved to be a lot more entertaining than I imagined and I think those who haven't seen it should check it out.

Lost potential

[arc_a2007 · 5/10 · 31 March 2009]

After being pleasantly surprised with Kung Fu Panda, I decided to check out this direct-to-video feature packaged with the DVD release. Now, if you look at this as direct-to-video, it's not bad. They certainly come much, MUCH worse. But if you're expecting something as satisfying as the source film, you will be let down. You'll also be let down if you expect all the originals actors to be present. This is something that would be right at home on Saturday morning television. There are a few CG scenes here, but the feature mainly uses the stylized 2d technique seen at the beginning of Kung Fu Panda. Nothing's wrong with that. What really sinks this for me is the poor story. Everything about this feature "dumbs down" the plot of its source material reducing the origins of these important characters to simple morality tales. It takes the easy road on these potentially deep characters and ends up being a bit of a letdown.

A bit obvious and not the most inspired short but still solidly entertaining for what it is

[bob the moo · 8 January 2009]

As Dragon Warrior, Po has had to face many challenges but on this day he must face one that would intimidate any great warrior – training the newest recruit of bunnies in the way of kung-fu. Left alone to fend for himself by Shifu, Po finds his class are only interested in the fighting part of the art and are keen to get down to kicking one another as soon as possible. In order to educate them in the true ways of the art, Po tells them of the Furious Five and how they became masters by learning life lessons of patience, courage, confidence, self-control and compassion.

As with the animated films from Pixar, Dreamworks included this short film on the Kung-Fu Panda DVD and I decided to give it a try. In a way it is a fitting inclusion to the main film because to my mind both the film and the short are enjoyable for what they are but at the same time are not quite up to the quality of the products produced by Pixar. With this film its main problem is that the plot is just too obvious in the moralising compared to some of the brilliant shorts from Pixar that can deliver the same message but are generally very inventive and clever. I didn't really get this here but, if you ignore this weakness of comparison then the short is still quite entertaining.

It is not really ever hilarious but it does consistently amuse across the twenty minutes and it doesn't really ram the moral down your throat (although it does push it into your mouth). The animation is mixed – perhaps for financial reasons but it does work within the context of the short. The bits with Po and his class are of the same quality as in the main film but the stories that make up the majority of the running time are delivered in a more hand-drawn style that looks cheaper (because, by comparison, it is). However don't let this take away from how good it looks because it is still stylish – sort of like the animation that opens the main film albeit it not as striking or as well done as that. Each story is relatively straight forward with a moral at the end of each one but they do more or less work.

The voice work is a little distracting though – not so much for what they do but more the obvious absences. Black and Hoffman are good, each reprising their voices in the main part of the short film – Black in particular puts a lot of energy into it, but the Furious Fives themselves not so much. Cross is good as Crane (probably having as many words as in the main film) but the others are mostly absent. Some of the characters are children in their stories so therefore it would not have been sensible to use adult voices but it is a bit strange why Chan or Rogen couldn't have found a bit of time to record the couple of lines needed for this – especially considering how few lines they had in the main film.

Either way the short is solid and entertaining with a solid if obvious moral message for the kids (and bunnies). That said it does feel a bit lacking in inspiration and does give the impression that it was made because it had to be rather than made out of a good idea or passion for the project – a cynical view perhaps but it is hard not to feel that at points, not due to something the film does but things that similar films do so much better.

A minor annoying featurette

[freakfire-1 · 1/10 · 31 December 2008]

Well, lets just say that the producers did not try on making this side feature. It doesn't look like its too much beyond story board. The only tie-in is the whole Kung Fu Panda part.

Anyway, you get to see little bits a pieces of the 5 main characters aside from Jack Black's panda. Yes, to the serious fan of the movie I guess they are OK. But to anybody else, they are a waste of time. And there is nothing more than that.

Overall, not much can be said. It isn't good and its not even in CGI. Lets hope next time they can make a side feature that actually has the same animation skill as the main feature. "F"

Feeling Robbed

[ravingparky1 · 1/10 · 5 September 2010]

My thanks go out to Dreamworks on such a great piece of marketing! 'The next Kung Fu Panda Adventure!' - sprawled in bold letters across the front of the DVD case. Be aware folks - this is not a feature length movie, it is 24 minutes of not a lot. As a previous member has posted, yes it probably was our fault for not reading the back which states '24 Min's approx'. I hope it raised the much needed funds for buying the MD's Christmas Champagne hamper. What's next DW - 'Purchasing this DVD enrols you into our monthly subscription plan, unless you cancel within 30 seconds?' I will be reading the small print on all future releases from Dreamworks.

Very Dissappinting

[Craig-Wood · 1/10 · 14 July 2009]

If you are looking for another adventure from Po and the Furious Five, you will be disappointed.

I purchased this DVD under the impression that it was a second movie or adventure for the "Kung Fu Panda" storyline.

In reality, this is a "Special Features" DVD which should have come as part of the original "Kung Fu Panda" DVD - to make it a 2 DVD set (the "Kung Fu Panda" DVD I bought only had the one disc).

To actually pay a full retail price, the same price as the "Kung Fu Panda" DVD, is a massive rip-off which people should be made aware of. If i had have known, i would not have bought it.

Although this is my own fault, I failed to look at the running time in the fine print at the back cover - which is something like 24 minutes. But when you have been marketed something pretending to be another story/adventure - you don't look at the running time in the fine print on the back.

I loved the "Kung Fu Panda" DVD, and was really looking forward to a second movie, so thats why my disappointment is bitter, because this DVD failed to deliver that.