A better movie than some of the critics and so-called seasoned movie reviewers think it is

Rating: 7/10 (10 January 2006)

This is a better movie than some of the critics and so-called seasoned movie reviewers think it is. Sure, it is not great and the animation is almost as mediocre as Shark Tales, but it does do a fine job of providing consistent laughs for the evening and has one catchy song: "I like to move it, move it (although the soundtrack version is p***-poor)." The plot, which starts off in a zoo, centres around Alex, a 'lion-hearted' lion, Melmar, a hypochondriac giraffe, a strong-willed hippo and Marty , an open-minded zebra who envisions life in the wild. After Marty escapes, Alex and friends rescue him, only to be shot by tranquiliser darts and sent on a ship to another place. Mayhem ensues and they end up in Madagascar, where they meet a crazed animal 'king' and his ilk.
Some of the one-liners here are actually quite hilarious. For instance, the monkey's: "Oh, of course we're going to throw poo at him!" and Melmar's: "Hey look, I've got a breath mint!" (it's actually a urinal cake). There are quite a few other funny scenes, like Alex's tranquilised delusions and 'King' Julian's impromptu signing of "I like to move it, move it". Melmar's antics also inspire a few laughs, especially when it becomes clear that he is not suffering from any ailments. Alex is less funny, which is surprising, given Ben Stiller does his voice, but seeing him rip a phone out and chuck it away for no reason is amusing. There's a lot of other funny stuff too, like when Alex's 'Statue of Liberty' collapses 9/11 style. King Julian's mistreatment of his assistant is also funny to watch.
To be concise, this is worth seeing. It is not a masterpiece; in fact, technically it is quite poor, considering it's state of animation when placed next to say, 'A Bug's Life', one of Pixar's older yet best-animated pictures. Still, it is consistently funny, even hilarious in parts and most people, especially younger kids, will warm to this film sooner or later.
3.5/5 stars