tomgillespie2002 When an animated family film unexpectedly strikes a chord with its young audience and develops into an unexpected hit, as was the case with 2005's Madagascar, the most common problem faced with the inevitable sequel is where to take its collection of rag-tag anthropomorphic heroes next. The original's premise was relocating a bunch of animal characters who had been raised in a New York zoo to be adored by the paying customers to the less-welcoming island of Madagascar. It was a promising idea, but the film fell flat thanks to some blocky animation and a lack of imagination and jokes. With the first sequel, returning directors Eric Darnell and Tom McGrath have pulled the same trick again, only this time dumping its hapless entourage onto the brutal plains of Africa, with Hollywood again apparently forgetting that Africa is a continent, not a country.After the adventure on Madagascar, zoo animals Alex (Ben Stiller), Marty (Chris Rock), Melman (David Schwimmer), Gloria (Jada Pinkett Smith) and a small group of militaristic penguins have fixed the crashed plane and are readying to fly back home. Also joined by unhinged lemur King Julien (Sacha Baron Cohen), they crash again in Africa after running out of fuel, and eventually find themselves at a watering hole, where they are overjoyed to discover more of their own species. Alex also reunites with his mother (Sherri Shepherd) and father Zuma (Bernie Mac), with the latter the alpha of his herd. While the others are each given roles in their animal society, Alex must prove himself to be worthy of his position of heir and title of 'King of New York', while fellow lion Makunga (Alec Baldwin) waits eagerly to take control.It's a very similar route taken by Ice Age and their increasingly tedious sequels. When the big idea has been used up, simply introduce a long-lost family member and give the comic relief side- kicks their own meandering side-stories. Melman, due to his hypochondria, becomes the village's witch-doctor; Marty struggles to stand out in a herd that looks and talks in the exact same way as he does; and Gloria is courted by a douchebag while she misses the true love right in front of her eyes. The only relief on offer is when the penguins are on screen, and their extreme competency with any given task and frequent bashing of an annoying old lady never fails to raise a chuckle. When they're not the focus, we are stuck with the incredibly uninteresting Alex and a bunch of generic life lessons for the kids watching. If you were content with the little charm of the first Madagascar, then chances are you'll find something to like her. For the rest of us, this is a slow trudge through familiar ground chocked full with broad slapstick prat- falls.

Angels_Review Wow… this is actually pretty good. There are only a couple things that aren't really good. First off, why is it called Madagascar? The first show has barely anything happening on Madagascar and now they are in Africa… what next, Europe? (*Head smacks desk hard*) FINE! How about you just call it Gallivanting New York Animal's or something? Just don't give us false hope that they are still on the island. There is also the little matter that they could of just ended it with the first and I would have been really satisfied with the ending. And now? Well, I think they could of ended it here and had everyone happy in Africa, wonder how they will work that into the next one.So, Alex has a mark on his hand that shows he's the son of the chief of in a lion group… When did he get this mark because he sure didn't have it in New York. It seems they just added it for the sake of making this movie. You know, I think the story would have been better if they didn't try to force the story to keep going. They probably could have done tons of things in Madagascar instead of coming onto the main land. Alex seemed happy there, so did the rest. They had shelter, food, and got along pretty well with the natives. Why did they still want to go back? I have no clue.I'm a little surprised that King Julian, instead of being a annoying prick, actually was able to have a bigger role in the show and give special characters a small push to keep the character arc going. Actually, a lot have a bit more info on each of the characters.The textures and everything are pretty much the same as the first, though one or two textures have changed like the small hand print thing on Alex's hand.Again, voices are pretty much the same as the first so not sure what to say here.Surprisingly though, this was better then the first movie and so I have good hopes for the next.

Gavin Cresswell (gavin-thelordofthefu-48-460297) I loved the original film as much as anyone else. It had a flawed story, a shorter time length, and a script that contained some humorous parts, but only some parts that were too predictable; but I loved it for it's charming characters and it's beautiful animation. So, when I saw that Dreamworks made this sequel to that film, I was only expecting this to be as good as the first, but sadly, I missed my only chance to see it in theaters of that year.Almost two years later, however, on my last birthday, I had the chance to get this on a DVD copy, feeling very desperate to watch it to see if it would whether or not be surprise me as much as the original even though that film had it's problems. Later, I became a bit surprised. OK, it's not as excellent as the previous film that came out the same year "Kung Fu Panda", but it's not one of Dreamworks' weakest (that goes to Shark Tale, Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas, and Bee Movie). The same characters are as charming as ever, but this time, they're much fleshed out especially King Julian and Maurice.Some of the new characters are great and I think the villain named Makunga voiced by Alec Baldwin isn't that bad of a villain, though he was underused and I liked Alex's parents as well. It's sad to see that Bernie Mac died just before this film was released (may his soul rest in peace), but I'm getting ahead of myself. The soundtrack from Hans Zimmer has improved a little in this film although it does have some generic bits. It does have some clever references which works for the comedy that got a chuckle/laugh out of me as well as it's witty and sharp dialog. There was also a scene that involved a relationship between Gloria and Melman which was so romantic and sweet to watch.The only two problems that I do have with this film is that while the story does have more heart than the original film, it's still predictable and does have it's similarities to the Lion King and Happy Feet and several scenes were dragged a lot throughout the movie. Aside from that, I said to myself, "This is a great sequel." I loved the original, but as a fan, this completely surprised and surpasses it as a much better entry of the franchise. Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa isn't an excellent film, but I totally recommend this to those who haven't seen it or the original film yet. It is that good!

Steve Pulaski Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa? After watching the film, something about the title, when you say it, doesn't sound right. Even if you've read the plot, the title doesn't make too much sense. The plot involves Alex the lion (voiced by Ben Stiller), Marty the zebra (Chris Rock), Gloria the hippo (Jada Pinkett Smith), and Melmen the giraffe (David Schwimmer) as they wind up fleeing the country of Madagascar in the very beginning of the film in a junkyard plane, flown by the pesky penguins, with hopes of reaching New York City. They crash-land in Africa, with no intentions of escaping to there. I guess they wanted to find a way to employ a title of uniqueness.No bother. It's not a huge distraction. Especially considering that the film is a notable improvement from its predecessor. Sometime during the three year break between Madagascar and its sequel, the brewing franchise found direction, hope, and audacity and created a sequel effectively better than the first - a rare quality indeed.Continuing on with the plot, the film opens with nice backstory showcasing how Alex, whose birth name was apparently "Alakay," was born in Africa to two loving parents. His father was Zuba, the alpha lion of the entire land. He turns his back for a few seconds, and Alex is lured to a group of animal poachers and is crated up and taken away. Zuba chases after him with no luck, and Alex's crate doesn't survive a rocky turn, catapulting him into a river. He floats to New York City, is greeted with open arms, and is quickly put into the Central Park Zoo where he will obtain a loyal following of fans. Despite being very dark and somewhat depressing, the elegance of it all sort of gives the picture a Lion King style quality I was not expecting.Then the whole ordeal with the planned flight, intriguing plane crash, and acceptance of being stranded again takes place, before we finally get something else delightfully unexpected; the characters separating. In the original Madagascar, the four animals stuck like clue. In this picture, they go off on their own for a good chunk of the film and sort of evolve into believable animals. The whole quality of the animals sounding like actors and not like their own individual self? Still present, but hidden behind the depth of the storytelling. Alex catches up with his father and mother, Marty desperately seeks confidence in his originality, Gloria finds a plump man, and Melmen becomes the "alpha-doctor?" and frets over confessing his love to Gloria; one of the many sweet love stories the film brings. There is also the obligatory evil character Makunga (Alec Baldwin), Zuba's rival lion, who adds some nicely placed tension to the film whenever he comes on screen. And even King Julien (Sacha Baron Cohen) returns to provide some nice humor.And did I forget to mention those four troublesome penguins? They get much deserved screen time in the picture, providing levels of insight and wittiness complimented by the film's overall narrative, which is more controlled and well-kept rather than so kinetic, jumbled, and anarchic. Is Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa on the same level as a Pixar film? No, but it works as a welcomed rebellion to the company. It sort of reminds me of how in decades past, animation films were theoretically monopolized by Disney, and few films (I can think of Bebe's Kids and Cats Don't Dance) challenged that assumption and ventured out to create their own world. Madagascar's sequel shows its sentimental side I was asking for during the original film. It's a balancing act of humor, sentimentality, and creativity, and is all captured pleasantly.Voiced by: Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, Jada Pinkett Smith, David Schwimmer, Sacha Baron Cohen, and Alec Baldwin. Directed by: Eric Darnell and Tom McGrath.