I never thought I would like cartoon movies, but I really fall in love with Paul, the cute round panda in this summer’s blockbuster Kung Fu Panda.

Maybe it started with my likes of pandas in general. Panda is one of the three animals that I like. The other two are koalas and penguins. As you may guess, I like 胖墩墩 and 毛茸茸 animals. (Anyone can help with how to say “胖墩墩” in English in a cute way as it is in Chinese?)

But this panda in the movie, Paul, is obviously more than just an ordinary panda. After all, he’s a Kung Fu panda!!! Well, if you’ve seen the movie, you’d know his kung fu isn’t that flatteringly good, but he’s a smart panda with strong mentality to be a real kung fu master.

This reminds me of what Jet Li said in an interview in the past that many people understand kung fu as pure actions, fighting back and forth and throwing fists and kicking axx, but people tend to overlook the mental side of it, for example, how to avoid using kung fu first, when to use kung fu, the philosophy behind kung fu.

I also like the Chinese elements in the movie. They really paid a lot attention to the details. Even the “villagers” – the rabbits and piggies – all wear Chinese style clothes and accessories. Really funny and cute! Not to mention the settings and music. I think it’s a big jump forward from Mulan.

Of course, the ultimate charm of Paul comes from the light-hearted humours everywhere in the movie, and they’re so well embedded into the story and the philosophical side of the movie. You’ll really need to watch it yourself to tell me if you like Paul as much as I do. :p