Marty the Zebra (Chris Rock), Alex the lion (Ben Stiller), Melman the Giraffe (David Schwimmer) and Gloria the hippo(Jada Pinkington-Smith) live in a New York Zoo with other various animals including some escape-scheming penguins and some very British monkeys. Alex is the King of the Zoo, adoring playing up for the crowd but Marty his best friend yearns to go back to the wild. He uses his birthday wish to this end and makes his escape from the Zoo to find the great outdoors. However things don't quite go to plan and the group of friends end up washing up on a sandy beach in Madagascar and wander into the middle of a party.
Finding themselves in the wild they have to fend for themselves and soon become very much aware of what they are.
King Julien is voiced by Ali G and has some of the best lines ever, though he wouldn't be half as funny if it wasn't for Maurice his little monkey Vizier (Cedric The Entertainer) as the combination of these two and the sweet little bush baby Mort really show the mentality of herbivores in the wild.
The theme is a well known one. This is a buddy movie and illustrates the power of friendship and tolerance and how love can conquer anything. It is nothing new, there are no twists, no clever plot diversions but it isn't particularly needed in such a simple child's film.
The beauty is in the humour and especially the slapstick and punning that this film is filled with. There are many, many one liners that you will take home with you and annoy family members with. For the adults and teens there are many mick-taking moments, including a homage to "American Beauty" and a quick reference to "Castaway." As well as this, the Dreamworks crew go right back to the basics of good cartoon making and include lots of characters falling, being set on fire, chased, bitten and generally making fools of themselves!
Madagascar is a great CGI movie and is due for release on blu-ray In September 2008. It will be a great addition to any collection as the humour and animation appeals to adults and children alike. This is a classic that will come to life on blu-ray DVD.
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