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 In cinemas Dec 11 [PG]
Directors: Eric Darnell & Tom McGrath
Runtime: 85 mins
The sequel to Madagascar (2005) starts off pretty much where the first film left off, with the ‘weirdos’ from New York being farewelled by their lemur hosts high in a baobab tree somewhere in Madagascar. Well, there is a flashback in the opening that foregrounds a reunion between Alex (Ben Stiller) and his long-lost family back in Africa – apparently, when Alex was a little tacker, he was stolen from his lion pride by cruel hunters, which was particularly difficult for his venerable father Zuba (played by the late Bernie Mac), who had been looking forward to his son growing up to take on the leadership of the tribe. Even his goofy son as leader, with his dancing and a vaguely effeminate obsession with butterflies, was preferable to handing over the reins to the scheming Mkunga (Alec Baldwin).
Back in the baobab, Alex, Marty (Chris Rock), Melman (David Schwimmer), and Gloria (Jada Pinkett Smith) are buckling up for the maiden flight of Air Penguin, a refurbished DC9 that bears a faint resemblance to the plane in Flight Of The Phoenix (1965). A nerve-wracking take-off after King Julien (Sacha Baron Cohen) and his Chief Advisor, Maurice (Cedric the Entertainer) board the aircraft – the King has plans of conquest on his mind – is a suitable omen for disaster, as Air Penguin realises the perils of building engines out of bamboo. The maiden flight ends somewhere in the African savannah, and – joy of joys! – Alex is suddenly the Prodigal Son.
But in this strange new world, which should be a home away from home, each of the main characters faces new challenges: Alex comes to realise that things are not what they seem to be in terms of succession; Marty’s acceptance into the zebra herd comes with the caveat of conformity; Melman finds a new vocation in a land where sickly giraffes head off to a hole in the ground when it’s time to die; and Gloria discovers love in the form of the magnificently proportioned Moto Moto (Will.I.Am).
Coming in at a few minutes shorter than its predecessor, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa is slightly less complicated, but much, much funnier. I quickly zoned out of the shenanigans of the main characters, finding the adventures of the supporting characters more amusing by half. Alec Baldwin’s villainous Mkunga is deliciously evil and ineffective, and the touring New Yorkers suitably useless in the savannah. But best of all are the penguin commandos, looking to resurrect Air Penguin with “grit, spit, and a whole lot of duct tape”, which is fine as long as they can negotiate a suitable enterprise bargain with some militant monkeys.
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TIM MILFULL
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