Black, white and loved all over

You won't be able to resist the cuddly stars, stunning scenery

Genevieve Loh

05:55 AM Jun 17, 2009

YOU can never go wrong with pandas. Especially when these deceptively serene-looking endangered Chinese national treasures appear as cute and cuddly-looking as they do (sans sharp teeth and claws).

Scene from Trail of the Panda

Even more so when your film - about a little panda cub who is separated from its mother and subsequently rescued by an orphaned boy after going through a series of hardships and dangers in the forest - is the first full-length feature to receive full support and supervision from Sichuan's Wolong Giant Panda Reserve in the history of the wildlife preservation.

Throw in the fact these precious stars were provided by China's foremost panda research and preservation centre and bore the brunt of the devastating Sichuan earthquake last year, and this 90-minute gentle heart-warmer will no doubt tug at the tear ducts and milk your every emotion for all its worth.

Scene from Trail of the Panda

Acclaimed Chinese director Yu Zhong gives the audiences a rare opportunity to see the majestic beauty of the area by poignantly capturing the spectacular scenery that has since been destroyed, and brings out a moving (if a tad over-sentimental) relationship between Chinese-Japanese child actor Daichi Harashima and the cub he becomes attached to.

Trail of the Panda will reignite the world's love for pandas, while cleverly providing a platform for the importance of environmental and wild animal preservation.

From TODAY, Plus – Wednesday, 17-Jun-2009; see the source article here.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Sichuan's pandas find new home after the earthquake (guardian.co.uk)