DVD Review: Madagascar Escape 2 Africa
DreamWorks Animation Film Stars Ben Stiller, Jada Pinkett-Smith
Feb 17, 2009 Dominic von Riedemann
It's rare to find a sequel that actually tops the first film. But DreamWorks Animation managed to pull it off with Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa, a sequel that manages to be better than the original 2005 movie.
Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa Stars Ben Stiller, David Schwimmer, Chris Rock
Shortly after the events of the 1st Madagascar film, our heroes Alex the Lion (Stiller), Marty the Zebra (Rock), Gloria the Hippo (Jada Pinkett-Smith) and Melman the Giraffe (David Schwimmer) are still trying to get back to the New York Zoo. They request the assistance of the paramilitary penguins (co-director Tom McGrath, Chris Miller, Christopher Knights, John DiMaggio) who jury-rig an abandoned plane in order to take everyone home. The insane King Julien (Sacha Baron Cohen) and his advisor Maurice (Cedric the Entertainer) decide to join them, closely followed by the squeaky-voiced Mort (Andy Richter).
Naturally, the plane stops working in mid-flight, sending it crashing to the ground somewhere in the middle of Africa. Alex reconnects with his family, Marty meets some like-minded zebras, Gloria gets romanced by a smooth-talking male hippo (Will I Am) and Melman finds himself the witch doctor for a group of hypochondriac giraffes while the penguins, and some monkey assistants, attempt to rebuild the plane. Hijinks ensue.
That's just the tip of the iceberg, plotwise. There are so many characters – and so many storylines for each of them – that it's almost too much to follow. Thankfully, directors Eric Darnell and McGrath are smart enough to keep thosee intersecting storylines distinct enough that the viewer doesn't get overloaded.
The first Madagascar was a forgettable film that was only redeemed by those crazy penguins and the even crazier Julien. Escape 2 Africa manages to eliminate that weakness by making the central characters' story arcs more interesting: Alex must prove himself to be a worthy son to his father Zuba (the late Bernie Mac) while Melman has to deal with his feelings for Gloria.
It also helps that the cast brings their 'A' game to this flick. Stiller, Rock, Pinkett-Smith and Schwimmer do their best not to be overshadowed by their co-stars, and Cohen's improvs add a lot to an otherwise stock, wacky character.
Thankfully, Alex's plot doesn't come off as a Lion King retread (a major issue considering that DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg developed that flick while at Disney) and there's some genuine pathos between the 4 leads.
DVD Extras
It's nice to see that DreamWorks isn't stinting on the extras for this DVD. The interesting and informative audio commentary features input by directors Darnell and McGrath, plus producers Mirelle Soria and Mark Swift. Note: That "other" animated lion movie only gets mentioned once during the commentary.
In addition to the usual making-of featurettes (pretty decent), the DVD features "Jambo Jambo," a quickie guide to common Swahili phrases, none of which were used in the film. There are also 4 music videos (meh), a Test Flight of Air Penguin game plus several more tidbits here and there.
The Final Analysis
Okay, so there's not much depth or emotional richness to Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa. But the vast majority of the jokes work, and that's pretty much "mission accomplished" for a comedy. Given how successful Escape 2 Africa was at the box office ($574. 4 million), a 3rd film is pretty much a gimme. The question now becomes whether DreamWorks Animation can maintain that energy over a third flick, or if things will get too chaotic, a la Shrek the Third.
While it will never get mentioned in the annals of great animated films, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa is a fun little flick. It gets a 7/10.
scene from Madagascar: Escape 2 AFrica
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