Wikipedia

Madagascar(2005 film)

Madagascaris a 2005 American animatedsurvivalcomedy film.It is directed byEric DarnellandTom McGrath,who co-wrote withMark BurtonandBilly Frolick.The film starsBen Stiller,Chris Rock,David SchwimmerandJada Pinkett Smithas a quartet of animals from theCentral Park Zoowho find themselves stranded on the island ofMadagascarand must adjust to living in the wild.

Madagascar
Theatrical release poster
Directed by
Written by
Produced byMireille Soria
Starring
Edited byH. Lee Peterson
Music byHans Zimmer
Production
companies
Distributed byDreamWorks Pictures(through DreamWorks Distribution)[1]
Release date
  • May 27, 2005(2005-05-27)
Running time
86 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$75 million[2]
Box office$556.6 million[2]

The film features a musical score byHans Zimmer.It also has a cover version of "I Like to Move It"by Cohen, which has since become a recurring theme song throughout the franchise.

Released on May 27, 2005,Madagascarreceived mixed reviews from critics, who praised the visuals and charm but criticized the story and humor. It was a success at the box office, grossing $556.6 million on a production budget of $75 million, becoming thesixth highest-grossing film of 2005.The success ofMadagascarlaunched amultimedia franchise,which includes two sequels as well as the spin-off filmPenguins of Madagascar(2014); several short films, television series and specials, and a number of video games, theme park attractions and live stage shows.

Plot

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InNew York City,alionnamed Alex lives in theCentral Park Zooas a star attraction known as the "King of New York". He spends time with his friends—Melman, areticulated giraffe;Gloria, acommon hippopotamus;and his best friend, Marty, azebra,who has grown weary of his daily routine and desires to experience the wild. On Marty's tenth birthday, Alex, Melman, and Gloria attempt to cheer him up, but a still-unsatisfied Marty learns that the zoo'spenguins—Skipper, Kowalski, Rico, and Private—are trying to escape toAntarctica,and promptly follows them out. Marty heads towardsGrand Central Terminal,as he plans to catch a train to nearbyConnecticut.Alex, Melman, and Gloria pursue Marty in an attempt to convince him to return, only to end up, along with the penguins andchimpanzeeduo Mason and Phil, at Grand Central, where thepolice officers,firemenandanimal control officerssubdue them. Under pressure from anti-captivity activists, the zoo is forced to ship the escaped animals by sea to anature reserveinKenya.During the trip, the penguins escape their crate and hijack the ship, hoping to head to Antarctica, causing the crates containing Alex and his friends to fall overboard.

Upon being washed ashore onMadagascar,the animals come across itslemurcommunity. The predatoryfossaattack the lemurs, only to be scared off by the fearsome appearance of Alex, who selfishly blames Marty for the group's predicament and makes several attempts to get them back to civilization. Marty finds life in Madagascar to be exactly what he was looking for and Gloria and Melman soon join him. Alex, finally coming to realize how selfish and entitled he has been and after some encouragement from Marty, eventually comes around and makes amends, but without the rawsteakshe was provided at the Central Park Zoo, his hunger sets in and hisprey drivebegins to show. The next morning, the lemurs' leader,ring-tailed lemurKing Julien XIII, leads his subjects into befriending the castaways in hopes that Alex's presence will keep the fossa at bay, despite protest about Alex's predatory nature from his adviser, Maurice, anaye-aye.After briefly losing his sanity and attacking Marty and his friends, Alex realizes what he has done and, fearing he may be a danger to his friends, flees to the fossa territory of the island. Seeing what Alex has become and how dangerous the wild can be, Marty regrets his decision to leave the zoo.

Having found Antarctica to be inhospitable, the penguins land the ship at Madagascar. Seeing the chance to return Alex to New York City, Marty crosses over to the fossa territory, following Alex's trail through the jungle Alex made earlier and attempts to convince Alex to return, but Alex refuses out of fear as he still feels ashamed for biting Marty. As Marty reminds Alex of their friendship and their home in New York, the fossa arrive and chase Marty away. Though Gloria, Melman, and the penguins come to the rescue, they are far outnumbered. Alex arrives at the last minute, having overcome his predatory instincts. He rescues his friends, and scares the fossa away from the lemur territory permanently. The penguins then satisfy Alex's hunger by feeding himsushi,which he finds better than steak. As the lemurs throw a farewell celebration for the group, the penguins decide not to tell them that the ship has run out of fuel, leaving them stranded on the island for the time being.[a]

Voice cast

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See also:List of Madagascar (franchise) characters
David Schwimmerat the film's British premiere in London
  • Ben Stilleras Alex, an African lion. Tom McGrath explained that "Ben Stiller was the first actor we asked to perform, and we knew we wanted his character, Alex, to be a big performing lion with a vulnerable side."[3]
  • Chris Rockas Marty, a plains zebra and Alex's best friend. McGrath explained the character: "Marty is a guy who thinks there might be more to life than what's in the zoo. We wanted his character to be energetic, so we listened to Chris Rock."[3]
  • David Schwimmeras Melman, ahypochondriac,earnest, and awkward reticulated giraffe and one of Alex's friends who has germ phobias.[3]When they were looking for a voice actor for Melman, they listened to Schwimmer's voice onFriendsand, according to McGrath, thought that it "sounded really neat".[3]
  • Jada Pinkett Smithas Gloria, a strong, confident and sweet hippopotamus who is one of Alex's friends.[3]McGrath said that they found all these traits in Pinkett Smith's voice when they listened to her.[3]
  • Sacha Baron Cohenas King Julien XIII, aring-tailed lemurand the leader of Madagascar's lemur community. King Julien was initially meant to be a "two-line" character until auditioning Baron Cohen improvised eight minutes of dialogue in an Indian accent.[4]
  • Cedric the Entertaineras Maurice, anaye-ayeand King Julien's royal advisor.
  • Andy Richteras Mort, aGoodman's mouse lemurwho is King Julien's biggest fan and Maurice's best friend.
  • Tom McGrathas Skipper, aChinstrap penguinwho leads a commando unit consisting of himself and three other penguins. McGrath, who also co-wrote and co-directed the film, initially lent his voice to the temporary tracks.[5][6]Growing up with films starring tough actors likeJohn Wayne,Charlton Heston,andRobert Stack,it was the latter of whom McGrath wanted for the voice of Skipper.[7]Stack was approached about voicing the character, but died two weeks before production on the animation began.[7][8][9]After that, DreamWorks Animation CEOJeffrey Katzenbergdecided to keep the temporary voice, with McGrath explaining: "People were used to me doing that voice. We knew it worked when we screened it."[7]Many of the character's traits were based on Stack's work.[9]McGrath especially emphasizedThe Untouchables,a 1959 television crime drama series starring Stack.[9]
  • Chris Milleras Kowalski, aChinstrap penguinand Skipper's right-hand man and intelligence officer of the team.[5]
    • Miller also voices Timo, atenrecwho is seen attending Julien's meeting.
  • Jeffrey Katzenbergas Rico, a silentChinstrap penguinwho is the loose-cannon explosives expert and weapons supplier of Skipper's team who communicates through grunts and squeals.[5]Mireille Soria,the film's producer, commented on Katzenberg's uncredited role: "The irony for us is that he's the one who doesn't talk. There's something veryDadaisticabout that, isn't there? "[5]
    • Katzenberg also voices Abner, a blue-eyed lemur who is seen at the paradise scene.
  • Christopher Knightsas Private, an English-accentedChinstrap penguinwho is the mild-mannered eager rookie of Skipper's team.[5]Knights was also an assistant editor on the film.[5]
  • Conrad Vernonas Mason, acommon chimpanzee(Phil, the other chimpanzee, is unvoiced, communicating to Mason viaSign Language.Despite this, Phil is the one who can read whereas Mason cannot.)
  • Eric Darnelland Tom McGrath as thefossa.
    • Darnell also voices Hector and Horst, two lemurs.
  • David P. Smith as Pancho, acrowned lemur.
  • Cody Cameronas Willie, ared lemurwho is seen attending Julien's meeting.
  • Elisa Gabriellias Nana, an elderly Yiddish-accented New Yorker. Gabrielli provided some background voices until the directors and producer asked her and her fellow actors if they wanted to try their voices for the role. Upon seeing a black and white sketch of Nana, Gabrielli knew that she wanted to voice her. She modeled Nana's voice after her Russian and Hungarian grandmothers and her stepfather, though she did not think that her voice would be kept in the finished film at first.[10]
  • Bob Sagetas Pal, ablue-and-yellow macaw.
  • David Cowgill as apolice horse.
  • Stephen Apostolina as a police officer.

Production

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According to co-directorTom McGrath,the idea forMadagascarbegan as a one-sentence prompt, and it took two years of development for the idea to be refined to the point where the four main characters were finalized.[11]In 1998, DreamWorks and PDI had started development on an animated film titledRockumentary,which featured aBeatles-esquepenguinrock band,and was to be directed byEric Darnell,after he finished his work onAntz.The idea was scrapped in 2001, but after production onMadagascarstarted, Darnell decided to revive the penguins as a commando unit rather than a rock band.[11]

Originally, Julien was intended to be a minor character with two lines. However, whenSacha Baron Cohenauditioned for the role, he improvised an Indian accent and eight minutes of dialogue for his recording. The filmmakers found Cohen's performance so funny that they rewrote the script and made Julien a much more prominent character in the story as "King of the Lemurs".Dana Carveywas originally offered a role but he turned it down as he was busy raising kids at the time.[12]

Home media

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Madagascarwas released onVHSandDVDon November 15, 2005.[13][14]The DVD included a short animated filmThe Madagascar Penguins in a Christmas Caper,and a music video "I Like to Move It", featuring characters from the film dancing to the song.[15][16]ABlu-rayversion of the film was released on September 23, 2008 byParamount Home Entertainment.

TheMadagascar - Movie Storybookwas written byBilly Frolickand illustrated by Michael Koelsch, and was published byScholasticin 2005.[17][18]Koelsch also illustrated theMadagascar: Escape 2 Africa - Movie Storybookin 2008.[19]

Reception

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Box office

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The film was a commercial success. On its opening weekend, the film grossed $47,224,594 with a $11,431 average from 4,131 theaters making it the number 3 movie of that weekend behindStar Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the SithandThe Longest Yard.[20]However, the film managed to claim the top position in the U.S. box office the following week with a gross of $28,110,235.[21]In the United States, the film eventually grossed $193,595,521, and in foreign areas grossed $362,964,045 with a summative worldwide gross of $556,559,566.[2]

Critical reception

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OnRotten Tomatoes,the film received a 55% approval rating based on 192 reviews, with an average rating of 6.1/10. The consensus reads: "Though its story is problematic in spots and its humor is hit-or-miss for the adult crowd,Madagascarboasts impressive visuals and enough spunky charm to keep children entertained. "[22]OnMetacritic,the film has a score of 57 out of 100, based on 36 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[23]Audiences polled byCinemaScoregave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale.[24]

Paul Arendt ofBBCgave the film 4/5 stars, writing: "It's also a pleasure to see a cartoon so determinedly devoid of sentiment, a stance confirmed by the hilarious demise of an angelic little duckling. Highly recommended for kids and adults."[25]Jeff Strickler of theStar Tribunegave the film 3/4 stars, describing it as a "good-natured kid flick" and writing: "This computer-animated comedy makes enough kowtows to adult humor that parents won't be bored, but it is clearly aimed at the peewee set."[26]Ann Hornaday ofThe Washington Postdescribed the film as "wildly fun" and wrote: "along with such recent classics asShrek,Finding NemoandThe Incredibles,Madagascarwill surely go on to take a deserved place on millions of families' video shelves as a reliable Saturday night staple. "[27]Kenneth Turan of theLos Angeles Timesdescribed the film as "a good-humored, pleasant confection that has all kinds of relaxed fun bringing computer-animated savvy to the old-fashioned world ofLooney Tunescartoons. "[28]Paul Clinton ofCNNwrote that the film was "a delight", and added: "Co-writers and -directors McGrath and Eric Darnell, along with their entire team, have done a terrific job with their sweet and whimsical story."[29]

Roger Ebertgave the film 2.5/4 stars, writing that it "is funny, especially at the beginning, and good-looking in a retro cartoon way", but added: "in a world where the stakes have been raised byFinding Nemo,ShrekandThe Incredibles,it's a throwback to a more conventional kind of animated entertainment. "[30]Philippa Hawker ofThe Sydney Morning Heraldalso gave the film 2.5/4 stars, writing: "Madagascar,despite some break-out moments of silliness, seems defined by a formula that can't fail to please, at a basic level, but never feels imaginatively inspired. "[31]Rick Groen ofThe Globe and Mailgave the film 2/4 stars, describing the film's script as "a wafer-thin yarn that might have doneSylvesterandTweetyproud, but goes missing-in-action when stretched over 80-plus minutes. "[32]A. O. ScottofThe New York Timeswrote that the film "arouses no sense of wonder, except insofar as you wonder, as you watch it, how so much talent, technical skill and money could add up to so little."[33]

Awards

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The film has won three awards and several nominations.[34]

Award Category Recipient Result
AFI's 10 Top 10 Animated Film Madagascar Nominated
Annie Award[34] Best Animated Feature Mireille Soria Nominated
Animated Effects Matt Baer Nominated
Rick Glumac Nominated
Martin Usiak Nominated
Character Design in an Animated Feature Production Craig Kellman Nominated
Music in an Animated Feature Production Hans Zimmer Nominated
Production Design in an Animated Feature Production Yoriko Ito Nominated
Storyboarding in an Animated Feature Production Tom McGrath Nominated
Catherine Yuh Rader Nominated
Golden Eagle Award[35] Best Foreign Language Film Madagascar Nominated
Kids' Choice Awards Favorite Animated Movie Madagascar Won

In 2008, theAmerican Film Institutenominated the film for itsTop 10 Animation Films list.[36]

Music

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Madagascar: Motion Picture Soundtrack
Soundtrack albumby
Hans Zimmer
ReleasedMay 24, 2005
GenreSoundtrack,disco,new-age
Length31:27
Label
ProducerHans Zimmer
Hans Zimmerchronology
The Little Polar Bear 2: The Mysterious Island
(2005) 		Madagascar: Motion Picture Soundtrack
(2005) 		Batman Begins
(2005)

Madagascaris the soundtrack to the 2005 DreamWorks film of the same name. It was released byGeffen Recordsand UMG Soundtracks on May 24, 2005. Of particular critical note was the cover of "I Like to Move It"bySacha Baron Cohen,which has since become a recurring theme song throughout theMadagascarfranchise.

The score was composed by frequent DreamWorks collaboratorHans Zimmer,with additional music byJames Dooley,Heitor Pereira,James S. Levine,and Ryeland Allison. Zimmer also adaptedJohn Barry's instrumental from "Born Free"into the score track of the same name;the Mormon Tabernacle Choir's cover of the song was used in the opening title sequence. Originally,Harry Gregson-Williams,who previously worked with DreamWorks onAntz,Chicken Run,thefirsttwoShrekfilms, andSinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas,was supposed to compose the film's score.Louis Armstrong's song "What a Wonderful World"is used in the film.

Madagascar: Motion Picture Soundtrack[37]
No.TitleArtistLength
1."Best Friends"Hans Zimmer,Heitor Pereira,James S. Levine& Ryeland Allison2:24
2."I Like to Move It"Sacha Baron Cohen3:51
3."Hawaii Five-O"The Ventures1:49
4."Boogie Wonderland"Earth, Wind & Firewiththe Emotions4:49
5."Whacked Out Conspiracy"James Dooley2:16
6."Chariots of Fire"Vangelis3:29
7."Stayin' Alive"Bee Gees4:44
8."Zoosters Breakout"Hans Zimmer1:39
9."Born Free"John Barry & Don Black1:24
10."The Foosa Attack"Heitor Pereira0:37
11."Beacon of Liberty"Hans Zimmer & James S. Levine2:09
12."What a Wonderful World"Louis Armstrong2:16
13."Callin' Out (MadagascarVersion) "Lyrics Born3:14
Total length:31:27

Sequels, spin-offs, and television series

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Main article:Madagascar (franchise)

A sequel,Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa,was released in 2008, followed byMadagascar 3: Europe's Most Wantedin 2012.

A spin-off series entitledThe Penguins of Madagascarpremiered onNickelodeonin 2008. The spin-off was made into the filmPenguins of Madagascarin 2014.

Another spin-off series entitledAll Hail King Julienpremiered on Netflix in 2014.

A prequel series entitledMadagascar: A Little Wildpremiered onHuluandPeacockin 2020.

Madagascarhas also spawned a number of short films, video games, and other media, as well as theme park attractions and live stage shows.

Notes

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  1. ^As depicted inMadagascar: Escape 2 Africa(2008)

References

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  1. ^"Madagascar".Box Office Mojo.IMDbPro.RetrievedJanuary 13,2025.
  2. ^abc"Madagascar (2005) - Financial Information".The Numbers.Archivedfrom the original on November 5, 2021.RetrievedNovember 4,2021.
  3. ^abcdefKeogh, Tom (May 21, 2005)."Animator talks to group of young enthusiasts about his new film," Madagascar "".The Seattle Times.Archived fromthe originalon September 20, 2014.RetrievedSeptember 20,2014.
  4. ^Lloyd, Robert (December 19, 2014)."Review: 'All Hail King Julien' lets the 'Madagascar' rave begin".Los Angeles Times.Archivedfrom the original on December 19, 2014.RetrievedDecember 20,2014.
  5. ^abcdefRosen, Lisa (June 5, 2005)."A colorful quartet of black-and-whites".Los Angeles Times.Archivedfrom the original on September 20, 2014.RetrievedSeptember 20,2014.
  6. ^Fetters, Sara Michelle (2005)."Keeping Control of the Zoo".MovieFreak.com. Archived fromthe originalon March 28, 2006.RetrievedNovember 2,2014.
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  9. ^abcMolina, Melissa (August 13, 2014)."SDCC Directors & Actors Talk Espionage and Hilarity in 'Penguins of Madagascar'".Comic Book Resources.Archived fromthe originalon March 4, 2016.RetrievedNovember 2,2014.
  10. ^Noyer, Jérémie (February 27, 2009)."Nana's back! Elisa Gabrielli on Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa".Animated Views.Archivedfrom the original on May 19, 2021.RetrievedMay 19,2021.
  11. ^abPhillips, Julian (November 25, 2005)."Escape from Zoo-York: Behind The Scenes of Madagascar".Skwigly.Archivedfrom the original on June 12, 2018.RetrievedJune 25,2018.
  12. ^"Why Dana Carvey Says He Left Hollywood in the Late '90s — and What He's Doing Now".Archivedfrom the original on November 8, 2022.RetrievedDecember 17,2022.
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  14. ^Arnold, Thomas (August 18, 2005)."DreamWorks Puts Big Money Behind 'Madagascar'".hive4media.com.Archivedfrom the original on November 23, 2005.RetrievedSeptember 22,2019.
  15. ^Ziebarth, Christian (November 14, 2005)."Madagascar DVD bonus features review".Animated Views.Archivedfrom the original on February 1, 2014.RetrievedJanuary 19,2014.
  16. ^McCutcheon, David (December 8, 2005)."Madagascar".IGN.Archivedfrom the original on October 25, 2021.RetrievedJanuary 19,2014.
  17. ^Frolick, Billy (2005).Madagascar: Movie Storybook.Scholastic.ISBN978-0-439-69627-2.
  18. ^Frolick, Billy; Frolick, Billy; Koelsch Studios (2005).Madagascar: movie storybook.Internet Archive. New York: Scholastic Inc.ISBN978-0-439-69627-2.
  19. ^Flexer, Michael J.; Hamashima, Lawrence (2008).Madagascar: the Crate Escape - Movie Storybook.HarperCollins Children's Books.ISBN978-0-00-728436-8.
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  24. ^"Cinemascore:: Movie Title Search".CinemaScore.Archived fromthe originalon August 9, 2019.RetrievedAugust 9,2019.
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  27. ^Hornaday, Ann (May 27, 2005)."A Roar of Approval".The Washington Post.ISSN0190-8286.Archivedfrom the original on September 25, 2020.RetrievedNovember 1,2021.
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  29. ^Clinton, Paul (May 27, 2005)."Review: Enjoyable trip to 'Madagascar'".CNN.Archivedfrom the original on November 1, 2021.RetrievedNovember 1,2021.
  30. ^Ebert, Roger (May 26, 2005)."Madagascar movie review & film summary (2005)".RogerEbert.com.Archivedfrom the original on November 1, 2021.RetrievedNovember 1,2021.
  31. ^Hawker, Philippa (October 4, 2005)."Madagascar".The Sydney Morning Herald.Archivedfrom the original on August 25, 2006.RetrievedNovember 1,2021.
  32. ^Groen, Rick (May 27, 2005)."Madagascar".The Globe and Mail.Archived fromthe originalon May 29, 2005.RetrievedNovember 1,2021.
  33. ^Scott, A. O. (May 27, 2005)."Escaping New York for a Real Jungle".The New York Times.ISSN0362-4331.Archived fromthe originalon October 9, 2021.RetrievedNovember 1,2021.
  34. ^abSoares, Andre (February 4, 2006)."Annie Awards 2006".Annie Awards via Alt Film Guide.Archivedfrom the original on March 28, 2008.RetrievedMay 22,2008.
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