 |
This article or section has multiple issues. Please help improve the article or discuss these issues on the talk page.
|
| Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster |
|
| Directed by | Eric Darnell Tom McGrath |
| Produced by | Mireille Soria Mark Swift |
| Written by | Etan Cohen Tom McGrath (animator) Eric Darnell |
| Starring | Ben Stiller Chris Rock Jada Pinkett Smith David Schwimmer Sacha Baron Cohen Cedric the Entertainer Andy Richter Bernie Mac Sherri Shepherd Alec Baldwin will.i.am |
| Music by | Hans Zimmer will.i.am |
| Editing by | Mark A. Hester |
| Distributed by | USA DreamWorks Distribution Paramount Pictures Outside USA United International Pictures Universal Pictures |
| Release date(s) | November 7, 2008 |
| Running time | 89 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $150 million |
| Gross revenue | Domestic: $177,081,385 Worldwide: $516,962,909[1] as of January 5, 2009 |
| Preceded by | Madagascar |
| Followed by | Madagascar 3 (2011) |
| Official website • IMDb • Allmovie | |
Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa is a 2008 sequel to the 2005 film, Madagascar about the continuing adventures of Alex the Lion, Gloria the Hippo, Marty the Zebra and Melman the Giraffe. It is directed by Eric Darnell and written by Etan Cohen. It was produced by DreamWorks Animation and was released on November 7, 2008. The film, distributed to theaters by Paramount Pictures, starts as prequel, showing a small part of Alex's early life, including his capture by hunters. It soon moves to shortly after the point where the original left off, with the animals deciding to return to New York. They board an airplane on Madagascar, but crash-land in Africa, where each of the central characters meets others of the same species; Alex is reunited with his parents. Problems arise, and their resolution occupies much of the remainder of the film. It stars the voices of Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, Jada Pinkett Smith, David Schwimmer, Sacha Baron Cohen, Cedric the Entertainer and Andy Richter. Also providing voices are Alec Baldwin, will.i.am, Bernie Mac, Sherri Shepherd. The previous title was "Madagascar: The Crate Escape", which was featured on a trailer with Ben Stiller. The film is rated PG for some mild crude humor. This, along with Soul Men, was Bernie Mac's last film performance. Therefore, this film is dedicated to him. The credits include a dedication: "For our friend Bernie Mac. Thanks for all the laughter."
Contents |
Plot
As a cub, Alex the lion was called Alekey and was the son of Zuba (Bernie Mac), the alpha lion. Though Zuba tries to teach Alekey to be a hunter, the cub is more interested in dancing. When another lion named Makunga (Alec Baldwin) challenges Zuba to a fight for the position of alpha lion, Alekey is captured by poachers. Though Zuba tries to rescue his son, Alekey is forced into a crate. The crate falls into the ocean where it drifts to New York. There, Alekey is renamed Alex and sent to the Central Park Zoo where he grew up, meeting Gloria, Marty, and Melman there.
In the present time, Alex (Ben Stiller), Gloria (Jada Pinkett Smith), Melman (David Schwimmer), Marty (Chris Rock), the chimpanzees, King Julien, Maurice, and the penguins have fixed a crashed plane in the hopes of using it to fly back to New York (Mort manages to tag along as well, by clinging to the airplane wing). Though the plane does fly, it ends up crash-landing in Africa because of lack of fuel.
In Africa, the animals are amazed to find more of their kind. Alex is reunited with Zuba and his mother Florrie (Sherri Shephard). Marty quickly fits into a herd of zebra who all look, sound, and talk exactly like him. Melman takes on the position of Witch Doctor amongst the animals after discovering that sick giraffes have no other option but to die otherwise. Gloria, interested in finding a boyfriend, attracts the attention of a hippo named Moto Moto (Will.i.Am).
Meanwhile, the penguins set about repairing the plane. They carjack several jeeps from New Yorkers on vacation (under "Operation Tourist Trap"), leaving the tourists stranded and lost in the jungle. A tough old woman called "Nana" (who had previously attacked Alex in a subway station in Madagascar) takes charge, reminding them that they are New Yorkers and always survive.
Unfortunately, life in Africa is not as wonderful as it first seems. Makunga, still determined to take the position of alpha lion, reminds Zuba that Alex must complete a traditional lion coming-of-age challenge. Alex, thinking that the challenge is a dance contest (it is actually a fight) competes against the strongest lion and loses quickly. To avoid being forced to banish Alex for failing, Zuba abdicates and Makunga immediately takes the position and banishes Alex and his family. Marty meanwhile begins to feel upset that all of the zebra are exactly the same as him, leaving him with nothing unique. Even Alex is unable to tell the difference between Marty and a different zebra, leaving Marty hurt. Melman is happy in his position as Witch Doctor until another giraffe tells him that he has a brown spot on his shoulder. Melman is initially not bothered (as he has brown spots all over his body), until he learns that the previous Witch Doctor apparently died two days after the "spot" appeared. Melman is also upset about Gloria dating Moto Moto, as Melman has secretly loved her for a long time. Gloria goes on a date with Moto Moto and quickly realizes that he only loves her for her body.
The next day, the animals are in a panic when they discover that the watering hole has dried up. Determined to make up for his earlier failure, Alex decides to risk being shot by hunters and leave the Reserve to discover what happened. Along the way, he makes amends with Marty by being able to pick his friend out of the herd of zebras. The pair discover that the stranded New Yorkers, under the instruction of Nana, have dammed up the river and built a primitive civillization. Alex is captured and Marty runs for help. Meanwhile, Zuba hears what Alex did and goes to rescue him.
King Julien suggests that the animals sacrifice one of themselves into the volcano to appease the water gods and regain their water supply. Believing that he will die soon, Melman volunteers to be the sacrifice. Gloria stops him just in time and Marty arives to tell them of Alex's fate. The trio, the penguins, and a hord of chimpanzees use the newly-fixed plane to come to the rescue. Alex meanwhile manages to rescue both himself and his father by dancing for the New Yorkers, who quickly recognize him from the zoo. Zuba joins in as well. The other animals rescue the lions with the plane and destroy the dam, freeing the water. At the volcano, Mort arrives (he had fallen from the plane into the ocean). He was pursued the entire way from the beach by a shark, which falls into the lava just before the water returns.
Alex manages to remove Makunga from power by tricking Nana into attacking him. One of the penguins marries a bobble-head hula doll from the plane and leaves on a honeymoon, leaving the other animals to remain in Africa.
Cast
- Ben Stiller as Alex
- Chris Rock as Marty and other zebras
- David Schwimmer as Melman
- Jada Pinkett Smith as Gloria
- Sacha Baron Cohen as Julien
- Cedric the Entertainer as Maurice
- Andy Richter as Mort
- Bernie Mac as Zuba
- Alec Baldwin as Makunga
- Sherri Shepherd as Florrie
- will.i.am as Moto Moto
- Elisa Gabrielli as Nana
- Tom McGrath as Skipper
- Chris Miller as Kowalski
- Christopher Knights as Private
- John DiMaggio as Rico
- Conrad Vernon as Mason
Release
Attached to the theatrical release of the film are the trailers for Monsters vs. Aliens, The Tale of Despereaux and Bolt.
Reception
Like its predecessor, the film received mixed reviews from critics. Rotten Tomatoes reported that 60% of critics based on 107 reviews with the consensus stating that "Madagascar 2: Escape to Africa" is an improvement on the original, with more fleshed-out characters, crisper animation and more consistent humor."[2] Another review aggretagor, Metacritic classified the film into the "generally favorable reviews" category with 61/100 approval rating based on 24 reviews.[3]
Michael Phillips of the Chicago Tribune stated in his review that the film "goes easy on the pop culture jokes, I should clarify: One of the smarter things in the script is how Alex, who digs his Bob Fosse and Jerome Robbins dance moves, becomes the film's primary pop-cult gag."[4] Some critics complained the movie's plot was similar to The Lion King, Joe Vs. The Volcano, and Happy Feet.[5] John Anderson gave the film 3 1/2 approval rating and stated "Madagascar 2: Escape to Africa," the sequel to the enormously successful DreamWorks adventure and a film that hews close to the whole "Lion King"/species-as-destiny/self-fulfillment paradigm."[6]
On its opening day, the film grossed $17,555,027 from 4,056 theaters with an $4,328 average. It went to be at #1 at the box office with $63,106,589 with $15,559 average per theater.[7] As of January 5, it achieved a domestic gross of $177,081,385 along with a foreign gross of $339,881,524 adding to a worldwide gross total of $516,962,909.[1]
Awards and nominations
- Best Animated Film (TBD)
Sequel
DreamWorks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg confirmed that there will be an additional sequel to Madagascar 2: Escape to Africa. Katzenberg stated, "there is at least one more chapter. We ultimately want to see the characters make it back to New York." It is set to be released in sometime around November 2011. [8]
Home release
Video game
|
Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa
|
|
|---|---|
.jpg) |
|
| Developer(s) | Toys for Bob (PS3/X360/Wii) Idolminds (PS2) Aspyr Media (PC) Griptonite Games (DS) |
| Publisher(s) | Activision |
| Distributor(s) | Activision Blizzard |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows, Wii, Nintendo DS |
| Release date(s) | NA November 4, 2008 |
| Genre(s) | TBC |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, Multiplayer |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: E10+ |
| Media | Blu-ray Disc, DVD, Wii Optical Disc |
| Input methods | SIXAXIS Controller, DualShock 3, DualShock 2, Xbox 360 Controller, Wii Remote, Keyboard, Mouse |
A video game based on the film and the game of the original film, was made for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, PlayStation 2, Microsoft Windows and Nintendo DS.[9], and released on November 4, 2008 in North America.[10] It was take place that the video game's gameplay will be similar to the first movie's video game with reprising characters and moves, although the environment is in Africa. The Nintendo Channel released this game on the week of November 7. The player plays a demo of this game where they control the penguins.
References
- ^ a b "Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved on 2009-01-06.
- ^ "Madagascar 2: Escape to Africa Movie Reviews, Pictures". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved on 2008-11-07.
- ^ "Madagascar 2: Escape to Africa (2008):Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved on 2008-11-07.
- ^ "Madagascar 2: Escape to Africa - Los Angeles Times". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on 2008-11-02.
- ^ http://www.decentfilms.com/sections/reviews/madagascar2.html
- ^ "Review:'Madagascar 2: Escape to Africa'". Retrieved on 2008-11-06.
- ^ "Weekend Box Office Results from 11/7 - 11/9". Box Office Mojo (2008-11-09). Retrieved on 2008-11-22.
- ^ "Katzenberg Planning 3rd Madagascar, 2nd Kung Fu Panda". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved on 2008-08-14.
- ^ Adams, David (2005-11-17). "Activision Extends DreamWorks Deal". IGN. Retrieved on 2007-05-30.
- ^ http://www.amazon.com/Madagascar-2-Crate-Escape-Playstation-3/dp/B001AWFIU4
External links
 |
Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa |
- Official site
- Movie's Trailers
- Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa at the Internet Movie Database
- Madagascar : Escape to Africa at Box Office Mojo
- Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa on the DreamWorks Animation website
- Official video game home page
- Madagascar 2: Escape Africa (PS3) at IGN
| Preceded by High School Musical 3: Senior Year |
Box office number-one films of 2008 (USA) November 9, 2008 |
Succeeded by Quantum of Solace |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||
Home |
Box Office (USA) |