Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa
(B or 3/4 stars)
'Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa', directed by Eric Darnell & Tom McGrath, is the perfect example of why you sometimes don't have to watch the "first" movie to enjoy the "second" in a series. I remember the 1st 'Madagascar' receiving some scathing reviews, so I didn't see it. So this sequel pops up. The reviews are better this time around. I drove to my new local IMAX theater ... and wound up enjoying the film very much. The main plot involves a group of New York Zoo animals trying to get off of the island of Madagascar (by plane) & back to NY. But the plane crashes, & they end up on continental Africa; their original homes.
Aboard the make-shift plane (piloted by some hysterical penguins) are Alex the dancing lion (voiced by Ben Stiller), Marty the loud, but loveable zebra (Chris Rock), Melman the worrisome giraffe (David Shwimmer), & Gloria the happy-happy-hippo (Jada Pinkett Smith). Though they aimed to get back to Central Park, the plane decided to crash them in Africa. Unexpectedly, Alex is happily reunited with his father, Zuba (the late Bernie Mac), & mother (Sherri Shepherd). Zuba is the current King of the land. Melman the giraffe thinks he's dying & is upset that Gloria seems interested in a big African hippo named Moto Moto; Melman's in love with Gloria, but she doesn't know it yet. And Marty is upset to find out that he's just like every other zebra; and not as unique as he initially thought.
There's a big subplot involving a rival lion (in the kingdom) named Makunga (Alec Baldwin). He doesn't like Alex or Zuba, & finds a loophole which states that Alex should be banished from the kingdom. Zuba steps down as King; making way for Makunga. But he is needed again when disaster strikes the land. With their river dried-up, Alex heads upstream into the unprotected wilderness (beyond their animal reserve) to find a way to bring the water back. Can Alex & Zuba find and break the dam that will 'let the river run'? Or will a cranky old tourist lady spoil their plans? Will the treacherous Makunga be dethroned? Though he believes he is 'dying', will Melman express his 'undying' love for Gloria before it's too late? Will Marty be able to separate himself from his zebra pack? And most importantly, can the penguins (and some new monkey friends) be able to fix their make-shift plane in time to assist? It all unfolds in a cheerful, brisk 85 minutes.
Madagascar 2 (as I'll now call it) does not have the most original of plots. We've all seen this type of story before. In fact, there's a tedious 10-15 minute section at the 1 hour mark that is way too reminiscent of the superior Lion King. But overall, I just really, really liked this movie. And I liked it for 3 main reasons: 1) All of the characters are fleshed-out (a rarity in animated films), funny, endearing, & loveable, in general. 2) The digital animation is crisp, bright, sharp, & wonderful (it helps in making you tolerant of the unoriginal narrative). And 3) it's just very funny. i.e., Sascha Baron Cohen (Borat) voices a delusional, self-aggrandizing lemur king. And there's a sequence where the monkeys are demanding to have a Union before helping fix the plane, etc. -- great stuff.
As in most animated films, there is a life lesson (blah, blah, blah): stay loyal to your family; they matter the most. Use patience, tolerance, & intelligence when facing disaster, etc. The voice work by Stiller & Schwimmer is competent. But Chris Rock & Jada Pinkett Smith really excel in their roles. Madagascar 2 is good-natured enough, high-spirited enough, & enjoyable enough that I would probably go see the forecasted Madagascar 3; whatever God-forsaken title it's eventually given. Though the plot is stereotypical/cliched, and it sometimes strains to be more 'hip' than it really is, this film is wildly successful thanks to its deeply textured animation, likeable animal characters, & consistent (not sporadic) humor. I haven't laughed this much during an animated movie in years.
Aboard the make-shift plane (piloted by some hysterical penguins) are Alex the dancing lion (voiced by Ben Stiller), Marty the loud, but loveable zebra (Chris Rock), Melman the worrisome giraffe (David Shwimmer), & Gloria the happy-happy-hippo (Jada Pinkett Smith). Though they aimed to get back to Central Park, the plane decided to crash them in Africa. Unexpectedly, Alex is happily reunited with his father, Zuba (the late Bernie Mac), & mother (Sherri Shepherd). Zuba is the current King of the land. Melman the giraffe thinks he's dying & is upset that Gloria seems interested in a big African hippo named Moto Moto; Melman's in love with Gloria, but she doesn't know it yet. And Marty is upset to find out that he's just like every other zebra; and not as unique as he initially thought.
There's a big subplot involving a rival lion (in the kingdom) named Makunga (Alec Baldwin). He doesn't like Alex or Zuba, & finds a loophole which states that Alex should be banished from the kingdom. Zuba steps down as King; making way for Makunga. But he is needed again when disaster strikes the land. With their river dried-up, Alex heads upstream into the unprotected wilderness (beyond their animal reserve) to find a way to bring the water back. Can Alex & Zuba find and break the dam that will 'let the river run'? Or will a cranky old tourist lady spoil their plans? Will the treacherous Makunga be dethroned? Though he believes he is 'dying', will Melman express his 'undying' love for Gloria before it's too late? Will Marty be able to separate himself from his zebra pack? And most importantly, can the penguins (and some new monkey friends) be able to fix their make-shift plane in time to assist? It all unfolds in a cheerful, brisk 85 minutes.
Madagascar 2 (as I'll now call it) does not have the most original of plots. We've all seen this type of story before. In fact, there's a tedious 10-15 minute section at the 1 hour mark that is way too reminiscent of the superior Lion King. But overall, I just really, really liked this movie. And I liked it for 3 main reasons: 1) All of the characters are fleshed-out (a rarity in animated films), funny, endearing, & loveable, in general. 2) The digital animation is crisp, bright, sharp, & wonderful (it helps in making you tolerant of the unoriginal narrative). And 3) it's just very funny. i.e., Sascha Baron Cohen (Borat) voices a delusional, self-aggrandizing lemur king. And there's a sequence where the monkeys are demanding to have a Union before helping fix the plane, etc. -- great stuff.
As in most animated films, there is a life lesson (blah, blah, blah): stay loyal to your family; they matter the most. Use patience, tolerance, & intelligence when facing disaster, etc. The voice work by Stiller & Schwimmer is competent. But Chris Rock & Jada Pinkett Smith really excel in their roles. Madagascar 2 is good-natured enough, high-spirited enough, & enjoyable enough that I would probably go see the forecasted Madagascar 3; whatever God-forsaken title it's eventually given. Though the plot is stereotypical/cliched, and it sometimes strains to be more 'hip' than it really is, this film is wildly successful thanks to its deeply textured animation, likeable animal characters, & consistent (not sporadic) humor. I haven't laughed this much during an animated movie in years.