![]() And just as the movie runs out of steam, the final credits save the day." But the voyage runs into trouble, and they wind up in … well, check the title.Ĭamerin Courtney ( Christianity Today Movies) says, "As the movie progresses, the humor threshold gets lower and lower. Together, Alex the Lion (Stiller), Marty the Zebra (Rock), Melman the Giraffe (Schwimmer), and Gloria the Hippo (Pinkett Smith) cause enough trouble to earn them a one-way tickets to Kenya. In his first directorial effort since 1998's underrated Antz, Eric Darnell delivers a story about the misadventures of mismatched creature companions who have escaped the extravagant luxuries of New York's Central Park zoo in order to seek their natural habitats. It scored an impressive opening weekend (approximately $61 million), not far behind Star Wars: Episode III-Revenge of the Sith ($70 million), which held on to the top spot for the second straight week. Photos © Copyright DreamWorks SKG What Other Critics Are Saying compiled by Jeffrey Overstreetįeaturing a whole zoo full of celebrity voice talents-Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, David Schwimmer, Jada Pinkett Smith, and more-Dreamworks' latest animated feature, Madagascar, refused to be crushed by the Dark Side of the Force. There's a bit of bathroom and belching humor and a couple of lion attack scenes that could scare the youngest viewers, but otherwise this PG-rated flick is reasonably family-friendly. Madagascar is rated PG for mild violence, crude humor and some thematic elements. The Family Corner For parents to consider What's the benefit of venturing away from home and experiencing people and places very different to what you're used to? Have you ever done this? What did you learn?.Have you ever, like Marty, wondered if there's "more to life than this"? What did you do about it? What did you learn in that process?.What do you think was the main message of the movie?.Do you think it was right for Alex to feel bad about his naturally carnivorous tendencies?.If only they'd spread some of this genuine humor throughout the rest of the movie. Who doesn't love a good lemur-doing-the-robot gag? And the penguins link arms (fins?) and do a little can-can action. The best by far is the King and his stoic sidekick Maurice (Cedric the Entertainer) doing the robot dance. While King Julien the 13th belts out the infectious (read: those with small children will hear this lyric nonstop for days) "I Like to Move It," the various characters dance alongside the scrolling names. As the movie progresses, the humor threshold gets lower and lower.Īnd just as the movie runs out of steam, the final credits save the day. And while there are clever references to American Beauty, Cast Away, and Chariots of Fire, there's also too much low-brow hypochondriac humor (bladder infections, rectal thermometers, and poop references) and not one, but two tranquilizer dart drugged-up delusion sequences. We don't get enough of the precocious penguins, who steal every scene with their conspiracy theories and Mission Impossible-like adventures. The plotting penguins might be the funniest part of the movie And Gloria is the lovable fly-girl hip-o who keeps them all in line. Melman is laughably neurotic as he traipses the mean streets of New York with Kleenex boxes on his feet to protect him from the grime. Alex is endearingly brash as the zoo's "mane" attraction. Marty is relatably wistful as he wonders if there's something more to life. ![]() ![]() Up to this point the pace and premise have been pleasing. On the way, the penguins stealthily commandeer the ship and set their sights on Antarctica, a sharp change of course that knocks our four crated friends overboard, only to wash ashore in Madagascar. When his friends stage an intervention, they all get caught and shipped to Africa. After a bit of birthday brooding, he decides to trot out the door on his own after lights-out that night and take the subway north toward adventure. When Marty shares his birthday-candle-blowing dream of going wild with his best buds, they don't get it. This wanderlust is fueled in part by the penguins, who put fanciful ideas in Marty's head about the "wilds of Connecticut" while trying to dig their way there themselves with plastic spoons and Popsicle sticks. Melman the Giraffe, Marty the Zebra, Alex the Lion, and Gloria the Hippo
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