CGI-animated films have become a commodity now, haven''t they? Back in the day when only Pixar was doing these films, we
were assured that they would be good. Even when Dreamworks got into the mix with "Shrek," I still had a lot of confidence in the new generation of animated films. But things have changed over the last year. Theaters have been hit with a series of so-so releases such as "Shark Tale" and "Robots," which have shaken confidence in the guaranteed goodness of the genre.
Thankfully, "Madagscar" rises to the occasion. As one might expect it does not compare to any of the Pixar films or even the "Shrek" series, but it is a quality little film with funny characters and goofy entertainment the whole family will enjoy. Plot takes a second seat to crazy antics, but "Madagascar" has enough of them that you''ll be laughing out loud for at least half the movie.
"Madagascar" follows the tale of a zebra (Chris Rock), a lion (Ben Stiller), a giraffe (David Schwimmer) and a hippo (Jada Pinkett Smith) from the Central Park Zoo who accidentally end up on the island of Madagscar, which unfortunately for them is only populated by a bunch of crazy lemurs.