Benjamin-M-Weilert

After the first two movies in the Madagascar franchise explored what it was like for zoo animals to survive in the wild, the natural conclusion to this arc was to bring them into an adjacent space for performing animals: the circus. While this didn't allow for nearly as much individual character development as was in Madagascar: Return 2 Africa (2008), Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (2012) was still a fun ride that looked the best the franchise as ever looked.

If anything, Europe's Most Wanted shares more with the first Madagascar (2005) than the second one. The focus on animals performing (including that somewhat annoying "Entrance of the Gladiators" bit that Marty (Chris Rock) does) and the return to Central Park is a good bookend to bring closure to the saga started in the first movie. At least this journey was more purposeful than a mere accident that put the main characters into the stranded situation that led to their quest to return to New York. The new characters also brought more to the table with their own struggles and goals.

Speaking of new characters with goals, I found it bizarre that most of these movies didn't have any humans involved, so introducing Captain Chantel DuBois (Frances McDormand) was a welcome change. Her unrelenting pursuit of these animals was honestly something that should have been a part of the first movie since the Central Park Zoo wouldn't likely just let four of their animals disappear without at least trying to search for them. Granted, DuBois is insane, which just adds to the thrill of her chase. In the end, there's a nice finality in the conclusion here.

A good bookend to the Madagascar saga, I give Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted 3.5 stars out of 5.

DreamWorks movies have always had a harsh comparison to their competition at Pixar. The visuals were never as stunning, the jokes as high-brow, or the plots as thought-provoking. And while Shrek (2001) was an early outlier, enough time has passed that they've developed some great movies like How To Train Your Dragon (2010) and The Bad Guys (2022). Still, movies like Madagascar (2005) highlighted everything that made DreamWorks movies distinctly of that studio-and also ultimately "less than" the comparable fare being put out by Pixar at the same time.

Ironically, Pixar explored the whole "predators can't deny their instincts" plot to a much greater effect in Zootopia (2016). In Madagascar, these four Central Park Zoo animals find themselves separated from the support system that made their life comfortable. Their reactions to being in the titular country are played for laughs through the "fish out of water" trope. And while the frenetic, jerky motions of these characters appeals to children, I found most of the jokes aimed at the adults were amusing at best and uncomfortable to explain to my kids at worst.

The one bright spot in this movie was definitely the penguins. Seeing as these characters eventually got their own dedicated pieces after this film shows that DreamWorks realized what they had with these competent creatures. Acting like Black Ops/Special Forces, it's criminal that these minor characters didn't have a much bigger role to play in the driving force of the plot. While I didn't care for any of the main characters' quirks, I could watch those penguins again and again just for the smart, quick, and funny dialogue. They definitely save this movie from being worse, but it's not that great either.

The average DreamWorks movie, I give Madagascar 3.0 stars out of 5.

When it came out, Trolls (2016) was one of those movies that didn't align with my particular Millennial nostalgia-troll dolls always felt a little weird to me. As such, I didn't watch this for the first time until I had kids of my own. Amusingly enough, this is a movie meant for Millennials who have kids. The bright, colorful aesthetic is meant to keep kids entertained. However, the soundtrack for this movie is exclusively filled with music most Millennials will recognize and will probably have some nostalgia for.

It's encouraging that there's something more to the plot of Trolls than just a bunch of naked, long-hair dolls. Creating this identity of creatures that have songs, hugs, and happiness as the core of their identity is a bit silly, but it works to offset their gigantic enemies who have none of those qualities. And since songs play so heavily into the troll culture here, it just makes sense to have lots of singers voice these characters. The mash-ups of these popular songs are fun and actually apply to the plot at hand (which is more than most animated children's movies have).

I can appreciate that there's not a lot of toilet humor here, even if DreamWorks movies have notoriously had this quality. Of course, given any kind of scrutiny, certain aspects of Trolls fall apart. I get that character arcs that level out characters like Princess Poppy (Anna Kendrick) and cause characters like Branch (Justin Timberlake) to find hope in life again to allow for character growth. Still, if you're just along for the ride-as most kids are-then Trolls is an entertaining film. And as a Millennial, the soundtrack sold it for me.

A nostalgia trip for Millennial parents, I give Trolls 4.0 stars out of 5.