Creature feature

Rating: 6/10 (27 May 2013)

Another enjoyable if hardly essential Pixar animated feature, centring on two converging stories of animals escaping from the confines of Central Park Zoo for what they hope will be the long-denied freedom of life in the wild. Story one, the more dominant of the two, involves a lion, zebra, hippo and giraffe while the lesser tale concerns a hapless group of penguins desperate to get to the Antarctic.
We get two contrasting outcomes to their respective quests, but with a predictably happy outcome as the usual mix of music, humour and high-quality graphics make for a light and easy watch.
I must admit that for me the familiarity of some of the lead voices, particularly Ben Stiller and David Schwimmer, takes away from the "personality" of their characters while Chris Rock as Marty is just too close to Eddie Murphy's Donkey in the "Shrek" franchise.
I also found the story lacking somewhat in conviction, centring too much on Alex the Lion's predilection for "going native" and some of the minor characters just too cute for comfort. But overall, with plenty to entertain the kids and some decent gags for grown-ups, this is another happy entertainment worth lashing out for a family concessionary ticket, I'd have said.