Term Paper 1

Tobias McKenzie
First Term Paper
9/18/13

Kung Fu Panda 2

      Kung Fu Panda 2, the 2011 film produced by Dreamworks Entertainment and directed by Jennifer Yuh, is an eclectic mix of different elements of an imaginary world where humans do not exist, and a China-based culture and world that centers around the use of the very human martial art of Kung Fu. The animals are all based on and proportioned to the species of earth, although most move around on two legs and are anamorphic, dressing and speaking as humans do. The world also seems, at first glance, to be similar to ours in terms of gravitational pull and the effects of force on the creatures and objects in it, with some obvious overlooks such as the fatter creatures like pigs and sheep defy gravity and anatomy to walk on their tiny hind feet. A critical and careful defiance of many rules of force, however, surfaces when one studies and keeps track of the effects of forces affecting the content of the world, a shifting and inconsistent set of rules that suggest the gravitational force of the world to be exceptional, and to have created some very interesting world rules of interaction between force and mass.

     One of the first things immediately noticeable is in the inconsistent strength and jumping ability demonstrated by the main character, a panda bear named Po. Considered in the world to be obese, slow, and extremely clumsy, Po often struggles to make it past even the most basic and normal obstacles in his world, such as when he can barely sit himself up and needs to be helped up by other characters (25:20). This seemingly understandable behavior and struggle is completely ignored, however, when the panda is performing his Kung Fu, which allows him the ability to leap impossible distances such as leaping off a cliff and into a battle at 7:33, move with incredibly dexterity and coordination, leap over flights of stories up a falling building (48:13), and up into the air at an impossible height at 1:10:42. He's not the only one, either, the Crocodile character can leap up what appears to be at least a full story into the air with little effort (16:18), and a hollow-winged bird character, Crane, is able to carry Po flying (6:40), and the Prayingmantus character can pick up Po (10:23), a pig on a rock (8:05), and manages to kick a gigantic metal cannon into the and through a tower floor (45:43). The evidence suggests that once entering a mode of Kung Fu the characters take on special strength and physical density, as non-Kung Fu-characters struggle with carrying heavy items more in line with general notions of strength, such as the rabbit who struggles with carrying a gigantic dumpling at 15:48. These inconsistencies all point to a baseline of real-world imitating gravity which can nevertheless be broken at any time, and start to apply a new gravitational defying set of physics that is not demonstrated enough to be speculated on, other than it's initiated by the use of the world's Kung Fu.

      The second break from real-world physics is the handling of moving or non-solid objects in the movie, most noticeably the cannonballs that are fired throughout by the main antagonist, and the rain droplets that are handled and controlled by both Shifu and Po. Although clearly outside the realm of possibility Shifu first demonstrates the rolling and catching of the droplets at 4:40, and then Po imitates it again at 1:02:22. It might be argued that all water in this world reacts as such, however at 23:43 Po experiences water droplets behaving normally (that is, they splatter and divide upon panda-contact), and again is affected normally by the rest of the rain that produces the droplet at 1:02:22. Water aside, even solid objects are malleable in their effect of contact. The cannonballs, projectiles of solid metal (the type is never specified, but based on it being taken from pre-industrial Chinese cooking utensil one would assume it is iron, or something similar), alternate between being able to destroy solid structures on contact to being stopped by the flesh and fur of a panda bear. Although the machine initially kills Master Rhino (off-screen) after the scene at 16:45, with the proof of a destroyed walkway and broken weapon at 41:45, and an entire tower is brought down by the power of a barrage of similar weapons at 48:00, not only is the cannonball stopped from obliterating Po at 58:28 but by 1:15:11 he is all but catching and volleying the balls back, the cannon balls he's grabbing from midair and launching back destroying a fleet of warships. The physics involved in the same types, or in the case of the cannon balls, exact same objects reacting so different to flesh versus wood, stone, and earth indicate a severe departure from our physics.

    The last main break from physics lies in the inconsistencies in sharpness and toughness of weapons and other solid objects. For example, near the beginning of the movie Mantis is able to cut sword blades multiple times with nothing but his front legs (8:14), but later on after being captured in a relatively tiny-barred cage he is unable to break himself out, although the metal is visibly thinner and he has space to maneuver inside, thus canceling any argument about his ability to perform a similar move. In other instances the interactions between certain masses are simply departed from the physics of our world, such as when Shen cuts effortlessly through a wooden beam and door with a dagger made of steel (16:30), the canon balls being stopped by a metal cooking pan at 58:20 when they brought down an entire tower and through a stone wall and three piled ships at 1:11:40.

     In conclusion, Kung Fu Panda 2 toys a lot with the weight and strength of its Kung Fu using characters, multiple characters ping pinging back and forth with unrealistic ability to being barely able to handle an average weight challenge. Certain substances and objects have their own gravity and force,  such as water, the cannonballs, and weaponry, allowing them to be handled in unreal ways, though they are often completely muted by the flesh and blood (and Kung Fu) of the characters they interact with. All of this leads only to the conclusion that the universe has a very different, multi-layered set of physics that departs from ours almost altogether. Still, although a lot of the force used and weights shift throughout the movie, it is consistent enough to become believable and normalized over the course of the story, and does not interfere or become too blatant to the point of being a distraction. Instead it allows for humor, story progression, and a sense of real power being held by anybody using Kung Fu, lending a magical element to the world.





Post-essay note: I understand this paper is late. I have no excuse; I forgot it was due this morning. All I can offer is an apology, a note that the premier of Agents of S.H.E.I.L.D. last night distracted me (I threw a party for the premier of the show I've been awaiting since I first saw Avengers in theaters.... 14 times), and I understand it's not an excuse (unless perhaps I have an explanatory note from Director Joss Whedon, who is my god and religion, explaining that these are sacred holidays to be observed. I've emailed him and am awaiting his responce).

And I solemnly promise to complete assignments the day they are assigned or first opened to submission so that this does not happen again.

Merry S.H.E.I.L.D. Premier!

And here is a cat who lives with me's twin brother (he's the good but stupid one, whereas I live with the evil genius):