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Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa | 2008 | PG | - 2.3.2
Sequel to the 2005 animated feature about a lion, a zebra, a hippopotamus and a giraffe who escape the Central Park Zoo in New York City and end up on the island of Madagascar. This time, with the help of a group of clever penguins, they manage to build a plane and fly to Africa. With the voices of Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, Jada Pinkett-Smith, David Schwimmer, Sacha Baron Cohen, Cedric The Entertainer, Alec Baldwin, Bernie Mac, Sherri Shepherd, Tom McGrath, Elisa Pensler-Gabrielli and Andy Richter. Directed by Eric Darnell & Tom McGrath. [1:29]
SEX/NUDITY 2 - A male hippo walks toward a female hippo, they flirt and admire each other (we focus on his buttocks and his chest) and he says, "I like 'em big and chunky" (a remark about the female hippo's size); he later says, "You're huge."
► A male chimp kisses a male penguin. A hippo and a giraffe hug and snuggle. An animal advises another animal to confess its feelings to another animal. Two hippos dance romantically and the male sings about love. Animals talk about dating and mating. We see what are portrayed as suggestive and incriminating photos of a penguin hugging a doll. An animal confesses his feelings for another animal.
► There is a close-up shot of the buttocks of several animals while the animals are dancing. A male animal dresses like a female wearing coconuts as chest covering and a grass skirt.
VIOLENCE/GORE 3 - A lion chases a truck, jumps on the back, tears open a crate, is shot at by the passenger of the truck, falls off and onto the road and we see that the lion was struck by a bullet in the ear (there is a part of the ear missing and a bit of blood is visible).
► Two lions argue about being in charge and they fight: one pounces on the other and we hear commotion hidden by tall grass, and we then see one twisting the arm of the other until he relents.
► A lion is struck hard by another lion, and is thrown back against a large stone that cracks in half and lies on the ground for some time (we see the lion with a black eye). A shark falls into a volcano.
► An elderly woman and a lion fight: they punch each other in the face repeatedly, the woman kicks and punches the lion, then pinches his chest (where nipples would be), the lion spits out a tooth, and the woman spits out her dentures. An elderly woman beats a lion repeatedly and drags it away by the ear. An elderly woman is thrown out of a moving jeep and lands on the road (she's OK); she is then struck by the jeep and thrown (she's OK).
► Two lions are carried in a bucket dangling from under a plane and are dragged through a dam that is broken. A lion drops a huge rock on another lion's head to wake it up. A shark lunges out of water and chases a small animal on land, snapping at it as they go.
► A giraffe nearly falls into a volcano but is grabbed and saved. A lion and a zebra are chased by humans who throw spears at them. A lion is caught in a trap and pulled up into a tree by a paw, and we later see the lion tied to a pole and placed over a fire to cook (the lion tries to blow out the fire); another lion frees it. A giraffe talks about "going to the dying holes and we die" when they are sick and we see several giraffe's heads sticking out of the ground (they cough and appear weak and sick).
► An airplane falls from the sky: the passengers panic (we see them being thrown through the cabin), two animals argue, and the plane crash-lands but all passengers are fine. An airplane is thrown by a huge slingshot into the air, it drops into thick trees but we then see it pull up and fly away although one engine is smoking.
► Animals panic when they realize that their watering hole is drying up. We see video of a woman striking a lion repeatedly with her purse. A small animal that clings to the wing of a plane when it takes off is swept away (we hear it yell). A lion cub in a crate is thrown from the back of a truck and lands in water where it floats away (we see it rescued later). A lion cub chases a rope that is being pulled through tall grass as a lure; when the cub reaches a fence, it is grabbed at gunpoint by two men, placed in a crate and taken away (the cub cries for help). A lion punches a nest repeatedly, and many birds fly out of the nest surrounding the lion, which runs away. An animal says that another animal trying to board a plane is "carrying scissors and hand cream" and this animal is tackled by many other animals acting as security.
► A penguin holds a knife in a threatening manner. Several penguins snatch a boy perched on the tip of a crescent moon, steal his fishing pole, catch a fish and talk about eating it. A penguin runs in the middle of a road and pretends to have been struck by a car, by squirting ketchup on his chest and cracking an egg under his head; people rush out of the car and try to revive him by doing mouth to beak resuscitation, but the penguin's abdomen fills with air and he is propelled into the air (he's OK). A penguin is struck by the hood of a car.
► A male and female lion talk about fearing their child had been killed. A lion and a zebra argue. An animal talks about performing a sacrifice to the water gods by having another animal thrown into a volcano. An animal says, "kiss your... goodbye" (the principal word is drowned out by noise). An animal refers to another animal serving drinks on a plane as an "in flight slave." A chimp signs something that is implied to be offensive. A giraffe fears that it has a fatal disease. An animal pretends to stab itself in the chest and falls to the ground. We see a human skeleton seated in an airplane.
► A young giraffe has a broken leg that is put in a splint, and an elephant has a knotted trunk, which a giraffe helps untie. Two animals pick their noses then offer what they retrieved to each other. Many zebras spit water in the air, then catch it in their mouths and spit is again; many zebras spit toward a single zebra, which is flung back. A penguin drools, and an animal spits.
LANGUAGE 2 - 7 mild anatomical terms, 1 exclamation (darn you), name-calling (fatso, monkey's uncle).
SUBSTANCE USE - None.
DISCUSSION TOPICS - Separation from family, class distinction, fitting in, being different and unique, inter-species relationships, friendship, ancestry, family, right of passage, proving your worth, competition, stereotypes, parental pride, dreamers, death of a child, love, hypochondria.
MESSAGE - Love transcends all differences. Skills that seem useless may be proven useful.
CAVEATS
Be aware that while we do our best to avoid spoilers it is impossible to disguise all details and some may reveal crucial plot elements.
We've gone through several editorial changes since we started covering films in 1992 and older reviews are not as complete & accurate as recent ones; we plan to revisit and correct older reviews as resources and time permits.
Our ratings and reviews are based on the theatrically-released versions of films; on video there are often Unrated, Special, Director's Cut or Extended versions, (usually accurately labelled but sometimes mislabeled) released that contain additional content, which we did not review.
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