Before the American movie “Kung Fu Panda” debuted in China, it seemed destined to set off controversy that foreign filmmakers were appropriating Chinese tradition for profit. Performance artist Zhao Bandi, who uses pandas in his own work, led the protest against the DreamWorks Animation film. He called for the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) to ban it for “uglifying the image of the panda … and harming Chinese’s feelings.”
His action seems to have not lessened interest on the film. Tickets of the movie have been sold out for weeks in Beijing film theaters. In the first 10 days of its mainland release the movie made $14 million. But the biggest debate was not over the popularity of the animated feature, but why Chinese couldn’t do it themselves. Film director Liu Bingjian says the film is “wonderful” and “I can’t help watching it twice.” Liu says he learned from this work, which handles the Chinese culture elements well and presents them in a global way. He explains the film includes classic humor, splendid martial arts, compelling story-telling and high tech animation.
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