Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (2012)

Alex, Marty, Gloria and Melman are still fighting to get home to their beloved Big Apple. Their journey takes them through Europe where they find the perfect cover: a traveling circus, which they reinvent - Madagascar style.

Directors:

Eric Darnell, Tom McGrath,

Writers:

Eric Darnell (screenplay), Noah Baumbach (screenplay)

Stars:

Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, David Schwimmer

18 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ben Stiller	...	Alex (voice)
Chris Rock	...	Marty (voice)
David Schwimmer	...	Melman (voice)
Jada Pinkett Smith	...	Gloria (voice)
Sacha Baron Cohen	...	Julien (voice)
Cedric the Entertainer	...	Maurice (voice)
Andy Richter	...	Mort (voice)
Tom McGrath	...	Skipper / First Policeman (voice)
Frances McDormand	...	Captain Chantel DuBois (voice)
Jessica Chastain	...	Gia (voice)
Bryan Cranston	...	Vitaly (voice)
Martin Short	...	Stefano (voice)
Chris Miller	...	Kowalski (voice)
Christopher Knights	...	Private (voice)
Conrad Vernon	...	Mason / Second Policeman (voice)

Storyline

Alex, Marty, Gloria and Melman are still trying to get back to the Big Apple and their beloved Central Park zoo, but first they need to find the penguins. When they travel to Monte Carlo, they attract the attention of Animal Control after gate crashing a party and are joined by the penguins, King Julian and Co., and the monkeys. How do a lion, zebra, hippo, giraffe, four penguins, two monkeys, three lemurs travel through Europe without attracting attention and get back to New York? They join a traveling circus. Their attempts to get back to New York are consistently hampered by the Captain of Animal Control who wants to make Alex part of her collection. Once they make it back to New York Marty, Alex, Gloria and Melman realize that they want to be part of the traveling circus.

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Plot Keywords:

penguin | circus | animal | giraffe | zebra | 

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Taglines:

Six years ago, they disappeared without a trace. Next summer, they finally resurface

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Genres:

Animation | Adventure | Comedy | Family

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for some mild action and rude humor

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 June 2012 (USA)

Also Known As:

Madagascar 3

Box Office

Budget:

$145,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$60,316,738 (USA) (8 June 2012)

Gross:

$216,366,733 (USA) (12 October 2012)

Company Credits

Production Co:

DreamWorks Animation, Pacific Data Images (PDI)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Datasat Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Captain Chantel DuBois sings approximately 1 minute of "Non, je ne regrette rien" to her henchmen. This is a French song best known through its 1960 recording by Édith Piaf. Piaf dedicated her recording of the song to the French Foreign Legion (FFL), which has now become part of the FFL heritage and is sung when they are on parade. Due to the men's reaction, it is assumed that all of them serve or served in the FFL.

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Goofs

In the casino Skipper looks through the periscope and says "I say we let it ride" and pushes the periscope up. A few seconds later the camera looks up at the chimp carrying the second chimp; and the periscope is nowhere to be seen.

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Quotes

Alex: We're going the wrong way! Turn around!
Marty: Just call me Marty-o Andretti!
Alex: No, you're Sucky-o Andretti!
Marty: Stop back-seat driving!
Alex: I'm passenger-seat driving, and I want the wheel! Give me the wheel!
Marty: It's not a wheel, it's my baby!
Alex: Your hooves aren't meant to be on a wheel!
Marty: It's too late for you to drive now!

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Connections

Referenced in Tosh.0: Smell Yo Dick (2012)

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Soundtracks

"Non je ne regrette rien"
Performed by Frances McDormand

User Reviews

Madagascar 3 Soars High Above Expectations

Finally! We have a movie in 2012 that is worth every minute and every penny. If your kids (or you, for that matter) cannot stop singing "Circus! Afro!" then go ahead and see Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted in 3D. It is the most clever, fun, and exciting animated film to hit theaters in a long time.

When we see our favorite zoo escapees this time, they are on the run with their jungle friends in Europe. Alex (Ben Stiller), Marty (Chris Rock), Gloria (Jada Pinkett Smith) and Melman (David Schwimmer) desperately want to get back to Central Park. Standing in their way is Captain Chantel Dubois (Frances McDormand) as the most evil animal control officer in the world. They narrowly escape her clutches by jumping on a train with a traveling circus. Now their only hope for getting to New York is to buy the circus and whip them into good enough shape to earn a touring contract in America.

Director and screenwriter Eric Darnell does an excellent job of leading the crew with this third installment. The story incorporates new characters beautifully by adding a love interest for Alex (Gia, voiced by Jessica Chastain), a dopey friend for Marty (Stefano, voiced by Martin Short), and a fallen hero everyone can cheer for (Vitaly, a tiger voiced by Bryan Cranston). King Julien (Sacha Baron Cohen) also finds love in a big bear wearing a tutu named Sonya, and the results are as hilariously sweet as the love saga of Donkey and Dragon. Kids will be able to keep up with all of the new names and nationalities and may even find a new favorite character in the bunch.

What makes this movie truly magic is the skillful use of 3D technology. Every leap on the flying trapeze, flight out of a cannon, and grasp at an animal's tail by Captain Dubois jumps out of the screen and excites the senses. It is so refreshing to see a movie in 3D that actually takes full advantage of its capability. The clever script and silly animation also kept me laughing, but I could have done without all of the jabs at people of Russian, French, Canadian, and basically all non-American descent. What was initially funny drifted toward mean, and resulted in one joke that was totally inappropriate. These moments only accounted for about 5 of the nearly 90 minutes of running time, so do not let that deter you from enjoying this chaotic adventure.

Madagascar 3 is just like going to the circus, but with more laughter and less wondering about how the animals are treated backstage. If you still like to "move it, move it," then you need to see it see it!

Review courtesy of The Rogers Revue