Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #843 in DVD
• Released on: 2006-06-19
• Rating: Universal, suitable for all
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Anamorphic, PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 82 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
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 (Ali G) 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, Amazon.com

Synopsis
The friendship between a New York City lion and zebra is tested when fate brings them out to the unforgiving wilderness in this computer-animated feature. Chris Rock provides the voice of Marty the Zebra, whose longing to explore beyond his cushy Central Park Zoo boundaries is the impetus that ultimately strands him and his pals on the shores of savage Madagascar. Marty loves the new, edible scenery, but his best friend Alex (voiced by Ben Stiller) the Lion begins to starve since his diet of thick steaks has been cut off, and the rump of his friend starts to look mighty tasty. Their other friends, a hypochondriac giraffe (David Schwimmer) and a sassy hippo (Jada Pinkett Smith), try their best to think of a solution as the call of the wild slowly turns the starving Alex into Marty's worst nightmare. Meanwhile the hilariously self aggrandising King of the Ocelots (Sacha Cohen) has a plan to use Marty to repel their own carnivore problem. This kid-oriented comedy stays adult-friendly every step of the way thanks to a clever script that mixes New Yorker humour and even some existentialism in with the pratfalls and spit-takes. Jolts of comedic brilliance are supplied by some Arctic-bound escaped con penguins, and a couple of literary apes. It's not a musical, but classic songs from the likes of Louis Armstrong and Sammy Davis Jr. keep the montages flowing loose and sassy.

Customer Reviews

Fantastic!
This has got to be one of the funniest animated movies I’ve seen since Shrek. The story starts with a plot by the Penguins to escape the New York Zoo and make a break for Antarctica. Marty the Zebra (voice by Chris Rock) decides that ‘the wild’ sounds like a place he wants to be so he makes a break from the zoo one night. His best friends, Alex the Lion, Gloria the Hippo and hypochondriac Melman the Giraffe find him gone and break out of the zoo to find Marty and bring him back to the pampered life of New York Zoo. Things don’t go according to plan and before they know it the four friends are on a ship destined for Kenya. They don’t quite make Kenya either!

Chris Rock is fantastic as Marty and David Schwimmer does a brilliant portrayal as whining hypochondriac Melman but the winners in this film for me have to be the penguins.

This movie is laughs all the way and had both myself and my husband in stitches. If you enjoyed Shrek then you’ll love Madagascar too.

Good for grown-ups too
I disagree with the other reviewers - there's plenty here to make adults laugh... lots of the jokes are aimed at the grown-up audience rather than the kids. It probably depends on your expectations - I wanted an hour and a half of entertainment at the end of a long week at work and Madagascar provided it. I wasn't after a cinematic masterpiece and no, it wasn't quite as funny as Shrek, but it wasn't that far off.

CAN'T WAIT FOR THIS DVD!
I really can't wait for the release of this DVD. This film is amazing. The scenery is gorgeous, the characters are fabulous but the storyline at first makes you think 'what is this film gonna be like.' Don't be fooled by the story. It works really well and believe me you will be laughing right through. Every character has it's own unique way about them that is fuuny but you'll definately be laughing at the penguins. This film is at the top with Shrek and Wallace and Gromit:The Curse of the were Rabbit. Believe me, if you liked previous Dreamworks films (Shrek 2, Shark Tale, Wallace and Gromit e.t.c) you'll love this. Take my word for it and if you're still not convinced, just check out what other Amazon customers have had to say. Brilliant, Brilliant, Brilliant. Definately one to have in your DVD collection. Finally, another animated film for all ages!!!