MADAGASCAR 3 Review

I had the opportunity to see a sneak preview of MADAGASCAR 3 in San Francisco last Saturday thanks to Crowdtap.  Unfortunately, due to a snafu with Crowdtap and the movie theater, we missed the first 1/3 of the film.  So, I will have to review only PART of the movie.

What I like about the "Madagascar" movies is that the animals are all funny and the voice characterizations are great.  There are plenty of jokes for grownups within the films to keep it interesting.  My big complaint about the films is the "potty" humor. I could REALLY do without that. 

The third movie introduces a new villain. The animal friends are loose in Europe and are trying to get home to New York.  Since I didn't see the beginning, I'm not sure what the friends did to incur the wrath of the evil Captain Chanel DuBois.  DuBois is a French gendarme who specializes in hunting down animals.  She is called in when the zoo friends cause a ruckus in Monte Carlo.  She is scary-looking in the tradition of Cruella DeVille with her red lips and sharp features.   In order to elude DuBois and her fellow officers, the animal friends go incognito by joining a European circus. 

The best part of the film was the circus.  It was fun to see the animals exploring their talents while making new friends.  I especially loved the character of a Russian tiger named Vitaly. Vitaly was once a circus star but lost his confidence in an accident.  I really liked his storyline because I think it speaks to overcoming adversity and supporting one's friends.  King Julian also gets to have a little romance as well.  I think this part will go over the heads of most kids. Some parents may be put off by the lascivious glances that Julian gives his new friend but it was amusing.

****Parental Advisory with minor spoilers****

My son was really bothered by the villain.  Something about her is very scary.  At the end of the film, she pulls out a saw to chop off Alex's head.  I think my son didn't understand what was going on but it certainly bothered ME.  Some of the 3D effects are a little intense. My son jumped several times but I don't think he was scared. Just startled.  The movie opens with an elaborate chase scene that may be intense for some younger viewers. There is a really big grossout scene at one point involving an elephant and a little boy.  Potty humor at its WORST!!!

****End of spoilers****

Overall, we liked the film.  The music numbers were great and we have Marty's catchy new tune, "Afro Circus," stuck in our heads. I could do without the chase scenes and the potty humor but we still enjoyed it.