Product Description

AT NEW YORK'S CENTRAL PARK ZOO, A LION, A ZEBRA, A GIRAFFE & A HIPPO ARE BEST FRIENDS & STARS OF THE SHOW. BUT WHEN ONE OF THE ANIMALS GOES MISSING FROM THEIR CAGE, THE OTHER 3 BREAK FREE TO LOOK FOR HIM, ONLY TO FIND THEMSELVES REUNITED ... ON A SHIP EN ROUTE TO AFRICA. THEY WILL LEARN WHAT LIFE IN THE WILD IS LIKE.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #750 in DVD
• Brand: Paramount
• Released on: 2005-11-15
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, Full Screen, NTSC
• Original language: English, French, Spanish
• Subtitled in: English, Spanish, French
• Dubbed in: French, Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 86 minutes

Amazon.com
The penguins steal the show. In the sprightly Madagascar, a mid-life crisis inspires Marty the Zebra (voiced by Chris Rock) to escape from his lifelong home, a New York zoo. His equally pampered friends--Alex the Lion (Ben Stiller), Gloria the Hippo (Jada Pinkett Smith), and Melman the Giraffe (David Schwimmer)--then escape to bring him back. Unfortunately, their attempt at damage control persuades zoo officials that the animals are unhappy, so all four get shipped to an animal preserve in Kenya...only a squad of maniacal penguins change the destination to Antarctica. The quartet end up on an island where, in addition to meeting some hedonistic lemurs, they learn about the food chain--and that Alex is a different link on the chain from the other three. Madagascar doesn't achieve the snappy perfection of a Pixar movie, but it tops most other computer-animated efforts; the collision of friendship and predator instincts makes for an unusually gripping conflict. The vocal performances of the central characters is serviceable, but Sacha Baron Cohen (Da Ali G Show) provides topnotch lunacy as the lemur king, and the penguins--voiced mostly by the animators themselves--are the best thing in the movie. --Bret Fetzer

From The New Yorker
In DreamWorks' latest attempt at an animated blockbuster, four overcivilized animals from the Central Park Zoo get transported to the wilds of Madagascar. It's a good comic premise, and much of the animation is beautiful, but the filmmakers don't follow through on their ideas. When the kvetching New Yorkers hit the jungle, we hope to see how their peculiar urban skills will allow them to deal with the creeping and crawling terrors. A few cobwebs cling to them, but the chief menace, the Foosas-nasty, hyena-like creatures-turn out to be pussycats. Great visuals, lousy plot. With Ben Stiller as Alex the lion, Chris Rock as Marty, a zebra who horses around too much, David Schwimmer as a hypochondriacal giraffe, and Jada Pinkett Smith as a commonsensical hippo. Directed by Eric Darnell and Tom McGrath. -David Denby
Copyright © 2006 The New Yorker

Customer Reviews

Laugh Out Loud Funny
I have to admit I was underwhelmed by the ads for "Madagascar", it just didn't look that good. But my kids were anxious to see it so I dragged myself into the theater on Saturday ready to see another kiddie movie along the lines of "Shark Tale" or "Home on the Range". I did not expect to enjoy the movie as much as my seven year old....if not more. "Madagascar" is not only a great animated film and packs as many laughs into it's hour and half as either "Shrek" movie did, "Madagascar" is just a great comedy. There were several times in the movie that were just laugh out loud funny, the scene with the Penguins in Antarctica was worth the price of admission for me! There are plenty of jokes aimed at an older audience, like the reference to "The Twilight Zone" episode "How to Serve Man". The story is great and the characters are really fun. The visuals are stunning and the animation is top-notch. Add all that together with a great soundtrack, and I think "Madagascar" is a great way to kick off the summer movie season. This one ranks right up there with "The Incredibles" and "Shrek".

Great for the family...
Madagascar is a cute and funny movie. Parents and kids were laughing through most of the movie. (there was an little while where the story gets boring.) But, I love the penguins and the fact that they are always so sneaky; they really steal the show from the main characters. If you have kids this is a definite must see, we had kids laughing the whole time and most loved the bright colors, music and especially dancing. You saw a lot of little kids dancing in their chairs. People without kids or older kids will also enjoy the movie as it has a lot of jokes for adults to keep us entertained and laughing; the bright colors are also great for us as well as the dancing and music. I felt this cartoon lived up to its previews and the way it was perceived. My only hope is if they do a 2nd one that they include more of those sneaky penguins.

3 1/2 stars out of 5- A Cute Kiddie Movie-
This movie is the best work that Dreamworks has come up with since "Shrek." The story once again mixes a new fresh idea, cute animation, and a great all-star cast... I enjoyed this movie greatly as well as my younger brother.

The story was charming... The characters delightful- i especially like nerotic Melvin- the giraffe and the penguins(I like so many others hope they make an actual movie about the penguins).

The special features are amazing... the Christmas penguin short was especially endearing. The information on the cast and the making of was interesting for me- but, then again I'm also thinking of a career in animation.

This is definately a movie to own in your collection or to buy for the kid in your life... Hit the buy now button this won't disappoint!