Director: Eric Darnell & Simon J. Smith
Starring: Tom McGrath, Chris Miller, Conrad Vernon, Christopher Knights, Benedict Cumberbatch, John Malkovich, Ken Jeong, Annet Mahendru, Peter Stormare
Certificate: U
Running Time: 92 minutes
Extras: Top-Secret Guide To Becoming An Elite Agent, Madagascar Mash-Up, Cheezy Dibbles Ad, The World Of DreamWorks
After the immense success of MADAGASCAR (2005) it was inevitable that sequels would follow, and that they did in the form of MADAGASCAR: ESCAPE 2 AFRICA (2008) and MADAGASCAR 3: EUROPE’S MOST WANTED (2012), with a fourth installment planned for 2018. However, it wasn’t just the main characters/animals to win over the hearts of children and adults alike; four penguins by the names of Skipper, Kowalski, Rico and Private have shot to stardom, with their film PENGUINS OF MADAGASCAR a hoot from beginning to end.
When evil Dr. Octavius Brine aka Dave the evil octopus (Malkovich) decides he’s going to turn the world against cute, fluffy, attention-seeking penguins everywhere, our four heroes (McGrath, Miller, Vernon & Knights) take on the task of trying to take him down before he can do any permanent damage to the birds’ reputation. However, when spy agency North Wind (Cumberbatch, Jeong, Mahendru & Stormare) swoop in to save the day, Skipper and his comrades will do anything to prove themselves, especially young Private (Knights), desperate to be taken seriously by his friends.
Although parts of the plot won’t make sense to the average adult human brain (an octopus in a vending machine, squid able to survive out of water), PENGUINS OF MADAGASCAR is a blast from start to finish, and will definitely impress children. With no need to watch the previous MADAGASCAR features, this is a stand-alone comedy packed with action, slapstick and clever quips – try to listen out for all of the celebrity name-drops (“Drew! Barry! More power!” – GENIUS!). Touching on the themes of friendship and feeling included, this is an animation full of heart but one doesn’t swerve too far into sentimentality, something which Disney can be accused of from time to time. The only flaw I found was the lack of original MADAGASCAR characters, but I think it was about time the penguins took centre stage.
90 minutes of colourful, noisy fun – a great distraction for the kids this holiday!
[usr=4] PENGUINS OF MADAGASCAR is available on DVD now.
