Having enjoyed the first two Madagascar movies and Merry Madagascar, and as a fan of the Penguins Christmas Caper and The Penguins of Madagascar, I knew I wanted to see this film, even if it wasn't as good. Watching it online, I was very taken with Madagascar 3. For me, it is the best of the three movies, and as far as the Dreamworks sequels go, it is third behind Kung Fu Panda 2 and Shrek 2. Madagascar 3 is not a movie I deem perfect, there is some suggestive dialogue during King Julien's romance especially(and in other parts of the film) that will fly over children's heads and only adults will get(same goes with the glove slap) and you do have to suspend disbelief a bit in Alex's dream when the penguins use warp drive for their airship(which you can't do in the earth's atmosphere),especially if you are a scientist.

On the other hand, it is a fun and hugely enjoyable film. It is the best-looking of the three films, the previous two looked great as well but here the characters move easier, the colours have brightness and warmth and the backgrounds have a great deal of detail. Especially of note is the animation during Katy Perry's Fireworks, splendid in all regards. The soundtrack is also great, varied in that it spans 30 years and full of exuberance. Firework I am not a fan of, but loved the animation and thought it fitted really well within the film. The dialogue is well written and hilarious, with light, subtle spoofing on other films and also on the Hollywood clichés.

The story is well paced, exciting and of the three Madagascar it is the most consistent and least predictable. King Julien's romance was on the bizarre side, but also sweet and hilarious. The characters are great fun, of the four main characters Alex is the most dominant and he's fun. Marty, Gloria and Melman don't have as much to do but they aren't completely side-lined. The penguins and King Julien steal every scene they're in. And the new characters are just delightful, especially Vitaly and DuBois. The voice acting is top notch, Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, Jada Pinkett Smith and David Schwimmer all do very appealing jobs. Sacha Baron Cohen is as witty as ever as King Julien, likewise with the penguins with Tom McGrath standing out as Skipper. The dogs are fun too. Bryan Cranston is subtly menacing, Jessica Chastain is charming and Martin Short is funny, but the jewel(and possibly the best single voice-over of the three movies) is Frances McDormand, whose DuBois is note-perfect.

In conclusion, a very good sequel and movie and my vote for the best of the Madagascar movies. 8/10 Bethany Cox

The gang is back. This time they are trying to return to NY thru Europe. When they get to Monte Carlo, all hell breaks loose and they attract the attention of Animal Control. In order to blend in, they join a traveling circus. Along with the penguins and King Julian, they meet all new characters and have crazy adventures.

The 3D is fun and the colorful kaleidescope is eye candy to the kids. They'll have fun with this confection. The story is ridiculous, stupid, and funny. The whole family will enjoy it. I brought my little nephews and they liked it.

I have to admit, that I didn't think this was going to entertain me as much as it did. There is the thin plot that made some people say that it gets the wrong message across. While it isn't entirely true (especially if you watch the movie you'll see there is more to it),you can understand why people would think that after watching the trailer of the movie.

And there was also the weaker second Madagascar movie that I had in the back of my mind. So I was hesitant when I went to see this one. But the jokes do work most of the time (even though there are some weird music choices in the movie). The 3-D effects are also really adding additional value to the movie. Animated movies seem to get them right most of the time anyway, but I thought I mentioned this anyway.

So maybe I liked it because of my low expectations or at least it helped a lot. But still if you are open minded you'll have fun with this