AMG Review of Kung Fu Panda [Music from the Motion Picture]

James Christopher Monger
All Music Guide

Composers Hans Zimmer and John Powell infuse the score for Dreamworks' 2008 animated comedy-adventure #Kung Fu Panda with plenty of semi-traditional Asian motifs and instrumentation, resulting in an enjoyable -- if entirely predictable -- soundtrack that deals out clichés like candy on Halloween. The opening track introduces the "Hero" theme, a wistful flute-led melody that sounds nearly identical to Howard Shore's "Hobbit" theme from the #Lord of the Rings trilogy. What follows is largely orchestral, with bursts of tribal percussion and the occasional dance number. The soundtrack closes with star Jack Black and Cee-Lo Green performing "Kung Fu Fighting," a song whose inclusion is apparently mandatory for every film, commercial, or skit ever made involving Asian culture.