Madagascar Movie Review:


When I think back to “Madagascar,” the first image I see is that of its co-protagonist, Alex the Lion -- his detailed mane, his meaty paws, his funny expression. This is a good sign; the latest animated movie from DreamWorks is most distinct in its playful visuals and especially so in its character design. Unlike the illogically anthropomorphic fish in “Shark Tale,” the animals here retain the characteristics of animals, and they exist in the movie almost solely, it seems, to go through the spectrum of computerized 3-D physical motions.

The implication here is that there isn't much of a story, and that, believe it or not, has its good side and bad side. In fact, the whole movie can be seen in this way, a constant coin-flip of a project, where good intentions take it in a hopeful direction but the results leave a bit of something to be desired. In terms of its story, “Madagascar” is admirable in that it doesn't follow any overused formula. However, in the meantime, it doesn't seem to go anywhere else in particular.

Having had enough of "be yourself" and "one person can make a difference" stories, I'll have to admit that the unpredictability of this movie’s plot made me sit up and take notice. Perhaps the most interesting thing about it is that, ultimately, it was about two animals (a lion and a zebra) having a relationship problem because they were, well, animals. The dilemma that Marty the Zebra (voice of Chris Rock) and Alex the Lion (voice of Ben Stiller) face can't be readily applied to human beings, nor is its requisite moral/lesson readily applicable to children. It's like an Aesop's Fable that has no easy parallel to people. The "lesson" itself seems less like a lesson and more like a "solution."

Is this a contemporary animated film -- one that doesn't spoon-feed kids or teach the audience anything? Whatever it is, it's not completely satisfactory. However, the movie feels like a step in the right direction, even if it's ultimately a small step. It's more willing to explore the places its subject matter can naturally lead to, as opposed to forcing itself to be another cut cookie.

The story, in this case, just serves as a place to spotlight the visuals, and here is another flipping coin. “Madagascar” boasts a wonderful storybook look, and each of the characters has a distinguishable style with especially good expressions. Nevertheless, originality falters in the movements -- the movie falls prey, once again, to the current trend of hyper, zippy motion, tailored to capture and recapture short attention spans (the best, most fitting movements were reserved for the penguins, who turn out to be among some of the best-rendered 3-D cartoon characters in the current pantheon). I was wondering how nice it would be to take these visuals, the looks of these characters, and have them work in softer, warmer motions. Perhaps that wouldn't have fit the snappy humor, but no one said a comedy about zoo animals who eventually find themselves stranded in Madagascar ought to have snappy humor.

I know I'm doing a lot of wishful thinking about all this, but I wouldn't have had any hopes at all about the subject if “Madagascar” hadn't come along. It's a movie with considerable potential, some realized, the rest falling short. I think the best way to watch it involves not paying so much attention to what's going on, but looking at the stuff that does work. Watch the penguins and see how they stop and spastically wiggle, like actual penguins. Look at the nice landscapes of trees, and the stripe detail on the zebra. I personally kept looking at Alex's mane -- it's lush and soft in the beginning, but becomes more and more frizzy as the movie goes on. There could've been something really good to go along with this artistry, and maybe in the future there will be, but for now this will do.

P.S. Warning to parents -- there are scenes in which characters drink water, only to spray it out of their mouths, over and over again. I'd watch out for this sort of scenario infecting the kids with similar urges; beware, or we could have a lot of wet, angry parents on our hands!



Jeffrey Chen

The co-director of Antz, Eric Darnell teams up with fellow animator Tom McGrath and two comedy writers, Mark Burton and Billy Frolick to sculpt out a story about some zoo animals who mistakenly end up being reintroduced back into the wild.

Alex the Lion (Ben Stiller), Melman the Giraffe (David Schwimmer) and Gloria the Hippo (Jada Pinkett Smith) love their pampered lives as zoo animals in New York’s Brooklyn Zoo. Their friend Marty the Zebra (Chris Rock) is a little restless at the idea of spending the rest of his days in such a confined space. He yearns for wide open spaces.

One day, Marty gets an unexpected visit from a burrowing troupe of penguins who are hatching a master plan to escape back to Antarctica. Marty decides maybe he can make his dream come true. Through a series of mishaps and madcap adventures the foursome of zoo animals will learn all about life and the world outside. Some are sure to enjoy it more than others.

“Madagascar” is a new clever and hilarious family film much in the same vein as the “Shrek” films. Like the “Shrek” films, “Madagascar” is full of clever comedic pop culture references and zany celebrity voices.

The stand-out celebrity voices this time around are Chris Rock, David Schwimmer and Sacha Baron Cohen, best known as TV’s Ali G. Rock is unmistakable as the identity confused zebra. Schwimmer is perfect as the hypochondriac giraffe. But as celebrities go, Cohen out shines the A-list stars as the overly energetic leader of the lemurs. Cohen is brilliant.

But for me the favorite of the film was Skipper, the leader of the penguins who was voiced by co-director Tom McGrath. Anytime those penguins were on screen I was in stitches. They have so much magic and character they deserve their own movie or maybe a short on the DVD.

The film does have rather slow beginning and I felt that the film was more fun when it didn’t focus on the 4-central characters. This film is all about the supporting players and to sustain a great animated film we need to relate and adore the central characters. Here all we seem to remember and cherish when we are done are the penguins and lemurs.

Come on Dreamworks, give us more penguin madness.




So Says the Soothsayer

Dean Kish

This thoroughly enjoyable animated comedy from the makers of Antz and Ren & Stimpy has a sharp enough script to keep us laughing all the way through, with vivid characters and a wonderfully silly adventure plot. It's gleefully entertaining fluff with absolutely no depth at all.

Four animals in New York's Central Park Zoo have never known life in the wild, so naturally they're curious. But Alex the lion (Stiller) loves being the star of the show, Melman the giraffe (Schwimmer) is terrified of everything, Gloria the hippo (Smith) is the sensible mother hen, and Marty the Zebra (Rock) is the adventurer whose dreams (along with four hilariously scheming penguins) cause a chain of events that leave our heroes on a deserted island off the coast of Africa. Of course they haven't a clue what to do.

Sharply written characters spring from the script and make the most of the casting without resorting to starry references. As a result, we quickly become involved in the adventure, and the interactions between animals become increasingly funny, reaching a crescendo with the arrival of the hysterical lemur king (Cohen) and his sidekick (Cedric). But even these aren't mere comic foils--they play important roles in the rather thin story. Only Alex is given some depth, when his instincts kick in and threaten to turn his best friend into dinner.

Vocal work is excellent, clearly including quite a bit of improvisation that brings scenes flamboyantly to life and makes all the characters hugely likable (the filmmakers thankfully omits the stereotypical villain). The design is extremely creative--the characters look properly cartoonish, not pseudo-realistic. But even with high-quality artwork, the technical quality is definitely sub-Shrek. Not that it really matters when we're having this much fun. The high point of the film is the elaborate hijacking of the ship by the penguins, who can't understand why they're being sent to Africa, so decide to head for Antarctica instead. With hilarious results. These side characters are a work of true genius, and deserve a film all their own.

Rich Cline

Living the highlife in New York’s Central Park Zoo, Alex the lion (Stiller), Melman the giraffe (Schwimmer) and Gloria the hippopotamus (Pinkett Smith) loved been the main attractions but Marty the Zebra (Rock) wanted more. Even though he had been in captivity all his life, he longed for the open space of the wild and on his 10th birthday this is what he wished for. While friends thought he was crazy, Marty decides to escape the confides of the zoo and discover some freedom, much to the distress of Alex, Melman and Gloria who desperately try to find him but when they all captured they ended up fulfilling Marty’s dream. They are all shipped back to the wild.

DreamWorks Animation brings us another new computer generated piece of family entertainment but does ‘Madagascar’ have what it takes to be noticed in this now very competitive genre?

Taking captive animals out of the zoo and into the wild is a premise that has lots of comic potential. When throw in the vocal talents of comedic actors Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, David Schwimmer, Andy Richter, Cedric the Entertainer and Sacha Baron Cohen the prospects for hilarity grow tenfold. It is a shame then that the movie only delivers slightly on that promise.

‘Madagascar’ is filled with fun moments but very few laugh-out-loud ones that will have you in stitches. Where Pixar and the ‘Shrek’ movies know how to create a blend of adult humour and childish fun, the latest effort by DreamWorks doesn’t quite get the mixture exactly right. The film has too many extended sequences revolving around the same theme, making you think that the writers formulated the premise and them tried to spread it out across the 86 minutes but they do this far too thinly.

What saves the movie and makes it an enjoyable experience, even with the plot shortcomings, are the characters. An animated movie is nothing without characters that you have to connect with straight away and ‘Madagascar’ has some really good ones. Alex the lion and Marty the Zebra are the leading pair and get most of the best moments and lines. Both are voices excellently by Ben Stiller and Chris Rock (in his most appealing role in years), who both bring a sense of character to the animals and not just making them cartoon versions of themselves. On the supporting side, Andy Richter is excellent as Mort, the leader of the Penguins who are always planning an escape. Cedric the Entertainer is funny as Lemur Maurice but it is Sacha Baron Cohen who steals the show as Julien, the King of the Lemurs. He has all the best lines and even a song and dance moment. Letting the side down are Jada Pinkett Smith and David Schwimmer as Gloria and Melman. Gloria is an underdeveloped character but Pinkett Smith doesn’t have the vocal talent to make her memorable and Melman is just ‘Ross’ from ‘Friends’.

‘Madagascar’ is a fun family picture that just doesn’t push the comic potential of the premise far enough. Some of the characters make up for this short coming however, making this a film you will enjoy but it might not become an animation favourite.

Jamie Kelwick

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