When I was around seven or eight years old, Madagascar used to be my favorite movie from Dreamworks Animation. It was a movie I remembered enjoying for its zany humor and likable characters. I loved the movie so much that I would literally beg my parents to buy me any merchandise that was under the Madagascar name. Though I have to admit that as an adult, some of the fun of this movie does start to wither away as my experience in good storytelling does start to make this movie look somewhat poor in comparison to some of the best CGI animated films. Unlike other Dreamworks movies like Kung Fu Panda and How to Train Your Dragon which keep getting better and better with every viewing, I am starting to notice more and more of the flaws of Madagascar. Still, even though it has its faults, I admit that there are plenty of decent and even funny things in Madagascar even though I admit it’s not quite as good as I remembered it being.
In Central Park Zoo, New York Marty the Zebra (Chris Rock), Alex The Lion (Ben Stiller), Gloria the Hippo (Jada Pinkett Smith), and Melman the Giraffe (David Schwimmer) spend their days entertaining the guests and doing their same old routines. However when a group of crafty penguins led by Skipper (Tom McGrath) tell Marty that they are busting out of the zoo to live in the wild, an inspired Marty decides to break free and head to Grand Central Station to live out his dream. Out of fear Alex, Gloria and Melman catch up with him to bring him back to the zoo only for them to be cornered by the police and get put on a ship to be transferred to Africa which creates a rift between Marty and Alex. The penguins meanwhile manage to break free and hijack the ship but end up throwing the four main friends overboard as they end up on the island of Madagascar where they are welcomed by lemurs who are led by King Julien (Sacha Baron Cohen) who, after seeing what Alex can do devises a plan to win the castaways over by getting Alex to be on their side so that he can defend his clan from the fossa but that may be harder than it seems seeing as Alex may slowly be turning into a killer himself.
The story doesn’t take itself too seriously as it treats itself like a full-blown cartoon meaning that you can expect there to be laugh-a-minute gags and preposterous situations that can’t help but feel interesting from time to time. However, that isn’t necessarily a great thing as the movie can suffer from being a little too in your face with its frantic pace that rarely slows down. In fact, the best parts of the movie are when they actually do take time to slow down and focus on character relationships. Another thing that can seem offputting to some audiences is the constant pop culture references which granted are not awful and cringy like in Shark Tale, but they do happen commonly throughout this movie and they are mostly hit and miss depending on the joke. I personally believe that you don’t need references to adult entertainment to be shoved into “kids” movies to get the adult crowd on board, sometimes it's better to create interesting characters and story threads that can speak to adults as much as kids which granted is not an easy task but is worth it when it's done right. Still, the character relationships and decent timing of the jokes and slapstick are done well in an entertaining manner that they make the storytelling feel better than it actually is.
The characters are wacky and surprisingly memorable as they got some pretty outstanding voice talent to play these likable and well-defined personalities. Chris Rock, Ben Stiller Jada Pinkett Smith, and David Schwimmer do an amazing job as Marty, Alex Gloria, and Melman respectively. They really feel believable as a group of friends who have known each other for a very long time and even when they argue with each other it’s very engaging and doesn’t feel out of place. The real show-stealers for a lot of audiences though would be none other than the penguins as they are funny, charming, and honestly deserved to have more time on the screen seeing as the audience only get to see their secret agent like personalities for brief periods of time in this film. Even the lemurs get to have a chance to shine, especially King Julien played by Sacha Baron Cohen who is full of himself but in a very entertaining way. These characters may not be the most interesting or complex characters of the Dreamworks studio, but they are no doubt possibly the most memorable from the company.
The animation goes for a different style compared to most CGI films that came out around the same time as this movie tries to emulate a Tex Avery or Chuck Jones cartoon but with 3D graphics. The character designs look very cartoony and they move very unrealistically to the animals that they are based on. For the most part, they move at a very fast and sporadic which can create a bit of an eyesore but at the same time, it makes the film stand out from most films from other Dreamworks movies or Pixar movies that try to ground the CGI with mostly realistic movements. The backgrounds especially some of the shots of the Madagascar jungle although stylized look very colorful and lush with a lot of greens and other jungle colors. If I did have to nitpick about one thing visual wise it’s that the character animation can look a little off as characters such as Alex have realistic mane hair and fur but move cartoonish as I think it would have helped to make the designs a little more rubbery and smooth kinda like in movies like Sony’s Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs. That would have helped to emphasize the cartoony style more but that’s really a minor complaint. This is an animation style that may not be for everyone, but it is still pretty unique in a lot of ways even if it can be overbearing sometimes.
The music is a mix between inserted pop songs and an honestly beautiful score by the legendary composer Haz Zimmer. The pop songs don’t overstay their welcome for too long but the film could have done a little better without them. However, I do digress that this movie’s rendition of “I Like to Move It Move It” is pretty awesome and its made different with King Julien adding his own personal flair to make the already known original version feel tame in comparison. Composer Hanz Zimmer brings his orchestrations to the table which are surprisingly catchy and lovely, this is a movie that really didn’t need these great music compositions because of the cartoony style of the story and animation, but it is nevertheless incredible how Zimmer was able to bring such warmth and fun to this movie in his own unique way.
Madagascar is not a timeless classic, but it’s not that bad of a movie either. Sure the dated plugged product placement and random pop culture references are not in any way excusable, but what the film lacks in storytelling more than makes up for in charming and lovable characters, interesting animation, and a surprisingly great compositional score from Hanz Zimmer. This film is a guilty pleasure in my eyes, even though I am starting to realize that there are many better-animated movies that do have more engaging stories and more appealing animation. This is a movie I do have a soft spot for, even if there are other Dreamworks movies that I would prefer to watch over this one.
(Final Grade: B-)