The Laws of Physics in An Animated Universe - by Charlie Ly
The physics of a universe can help establish the tone and level of seriousness that its characters convey. In all films, the audience has certain expectations for what the physics of the world they are introduced to will be like. In the universes of animated films, it is expected that the characters the audience is introduced to will not live in a reality with physics like our own. Kung Fu Panda is a 2008 computer-animated film that emphasizes its unique physics throughout the entirety of its story, and - in doing so - emphasizes its characters and themes. The universe of Kung Fu Panda runs on physics that - although similar to the physics of reality - evidently runs with different laws/levels of force, bounce, and heat resistance.
One way in-which the Kung Fu Panda universe’s physics differs from our own is how the physics of force (mass x acceleration, specifically) is generally more powerful than it is in the real world. This is evident by how, in the beginning of the film, roughly 15 fireworks rockets attached to a chair provide enough thrust to propel Po several yards into the air. In our universe, Po the Panda would weigh about 250 pounds. As shown in the MythBusters episode “Ming Dynasty Astronaut”, small rockets attached to a chair - without a 250 pound panda - cannot generate enough thrust (force) to achieve liftoff. Later, at the end of the movie, Po uses an advanced kung fu technique on Tai Lung. The kung fu technique - called the “Wuxi Finger Hold” - involves clutching the opponent’s finger in such a way that the attacker’s flexing of a single finger - in their own hand - can brutally hurt the opponent’s whole body. After Po successfully uses this technique on Tai Lung, the force of impact is so great that a large gust of wind sweeps across the entire Valley of Peace. Keep in mind that the Li River Valley - the real-world inspiration for the Valley of Peace - stretches 52 miles, so the Valley of Peace would be roughly the same size, and Po would have to generate ludicrous amounts of force to create a gust of wind that massive. Clearly, the laws of force in the universe of Kung Fu Panda are far more powerful than what we humans are accustomed to in real-life, and this helps the film’s focus on kung fu, which is evidently more strong and effective in Kung Fu Panda than in the real world. That is why the audience can understand Po’s obsession with kung fu - in his world, kung fu really is as awesomely powerful as he makes it out to be.
However, it is important to note that the impressive physics of force in Kung Fu Panda is not completely consistent within the context of the film. The stronger strength of force in the Kung Fu Panda universe - in-comparison to our own - is contradicted by the fact that Po does not sustain any visible injuries nor feel any substantial pain upon falling down from his fireworks rocket liftoff. The force of impact that Po feels upon hitting the hard stone floor of the Jade Palace fighting grounds should have greatly damaged his body. At the very least, considering that he is a massive 250 pound panda with lots of air resistence to match, the impact should have broken some of his bones. This inconsistency helps to serve as a reminder to the film-watching audience that Kung Fu Panda is a work of fiction, and not all of its laws of physics are as consistent as the ones we live with.
Regardless of the slight inconsistencies in physics, something that the Kung Fu Panda universe establishes very firmly is how the animals of their world have the bounce properties of a rubber ball - Po himself is a bouncy panda that seems to bounce through lots of physical punishment. We can see this in the middle of the movie when, after failing a fighting test from Master Shifu, Po is kicked out of the Jade Palace and literally bounces down the stairs. Po’s friend Mantis even makes a joking aside that Po will not stop bouncing. This establishes that - in the world of Kung Fu Panda - the phenomenon of bouncing down a large flight of stairs is not physically improbable. Even in the film’s climactic final battle, both Po and Tai Lung bounce like rubber balls down the Valley of Peace. The phenomenon of bouncy, rubbery animals makes the Kung Fu Panda world unique, and helps to establish its heavy emphasis on comedy.
One other unique aspect of Kung Fu Panda’s physics is how the animals of Kung Fu Panda are resilient to extremely high changes in temperature. Shortly after Po is chosen as the “Dragon Warrior” by Master Oogway, Master Shifu attempts to scare Po out of the Jade Palace by putting him through tortuous training exercises. In this training exercise, Po receives third degree burns due to a delayed reaction on what can be described as a stack of automated mini-flamethrowers positioned upwards. Despite being burned to the point that his face and body are striped black with ashes, Po is still capable of slow, controlled movements. His eyeballs manage to avoid any of the damage that the rest of his face received from the flames, and Po generally acts as though he is exhausted from running three miles rather than as though he was brutally burned by very active fires. Furthermore, the Furious Five and Master Shifu have deadpan reactions to this display, confirming that this level of resistance to extremely high changes in temperature is nothing unusual in their world. By establishing that the denizens of its world - namely Po the Panda - are resistant to heat, Kung Fu Panda emphasizes its theme of perseverance (specifically, perseverance of the underdog), and not giving up even in light of being burned by scorching hot fire.
Additionally, In Shifu’s final fight of the film, he takes on his former student Tai Lung. In this fight, Tai Lung sets his fists on fire with blue flames - blue flames being at least 1500 degrees Celsius, hotter than red flames - and proceeds to use his fists to pummel his former master. Although Shifu - a flammable red panda - is physically hurt by this attack, he does not sustain the extremely high level of pain that burn victims in the real world would get when forcefully smothered with blue fire. Furthermore, Tai Lung - a flammable snow leopard - does not appear to sustain any injuries nor feel any of the pain that he would feel in the real world after encasing his fists in blue fire. By having Tai Lung encase his hands in flames, the audience is shown the anger and frustrations of a student who is literally burning himself with pride while his master must endure the pain and misery of seeing his former student - and son - become a monster. In this instance of establishing the high heat resistance of Tai Lung and Shifu, Kung Fu Panda once again emphasizes the theme of perseverance, but this time of a pupil's anger and his master's pain.
In-summary, Kung Fu Panda’s physics are similar enough to reality that it does not break the audience’s suspension of disbelief, but alas, there are obvious and very consistent differences between its physics compared to our own. It is these thematic liberties with physics that help establish the unique feel of Kung Fu Panda’s extravagant world, and it helps draw us in as viewers. By increasing the strength of force, we establish the central role that kung fu plays in Po’s life. Establishing that Kung Fu Panda’s characters are bouncy and soft makes it clear that we are in the comedic world of a lovable panda. Lastly, the high heat resistance of Kung Fu Panda’s characters fits in with the theme of persevering under heated pressure, just as Po does throughout the movie by saving the day when everyone doubted he could be his valley’s hero. It is with dedicated commitment that the filmmakers behind this movie felt it necessary to have the world they created function in the way that it does, to draw us in with its characters and story. Clearly, Kung Fu Panda’s physics was not made different for the sake of being different - nor for being a work of animation - but in-order to better tell its story and themes, so that the viewer takes from the film a lesson befitting of a world that emphasizes kung fu fighting, comedy, and perseverance.
