Meet 'The Penguins' in "Penguins of Madagascar"*

Super spy teams aren't born...they're hatched. Discover the secrets of the greatest and most hilarious covert birds in the global espionage biz: Skipper, Kowalski, Rico, and Private.

For a little humor to spark the holiday season, DreamWorks Animation is giving audiences a spin-off of the Madagascar film & television series, focusing on the supporting background characters who shone through every movie, The Penguins. Set right after the events in Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted, the spy thriller adventure features the cute flightless bird friends taking on a top secret mission with a team called “The North Wind” in 2014’s Penguins of Madagascar. As Puss and Boots was to The Shrek franchise, “The Penguins” are no longer scene-stealing sideshows, but now tapped for their cuteness, humor, action, and adventure for their own feature film.

As the title conveys, the movie spotlights four penguins (Skipper, Kowalski, Rico, and Private) from the previous films, though it is not necessary to have seen the other movies to understand this one. Now, the four penguins face a situation with a new villain, Dave, requiring them to team up with another group of animal secret agents to stop Dave's evil plan. The movie opens with a preliminary back-story, and once audiences soak that in, the film throws viewers straight into the action for the majority of the film. Immediately, The Penguins capitalizes on being funny and providing an entertaining plot that includes high pace, top-notch action scenes accompanying visually stunning animation. The Venice chase sequence is particularly entertaining, especially in 3D.

In addition to the humor and animation, parents will likely find some well-known film references to add a little depth to the movie. Some of these include when the penguins team up during the climax, and parody this film's team line-up shot reminiscent of The Avengers (2012). There is also a warehouse scene in Dave’s submarine like a scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), and Kowalski utters a familiar line from the 1968 Planet of the Apes.

The movie depends on providing a certain balance of action and humor, since there are several frantic and high speed villain chases along with many clever jokes, which may require a second viewing so as to catch everything. To go along with the action and humor, the voice acting is top notch. I appreciate that the movie, unlike several of its DreamWorks counterparts, did not feel the need to rely on big name celebrities. Nevertheless, it features a few main big names: Benedict Cumberbatch as “Classified,” a fellow fox secret agent; and John Malkovich as “Dave,” the villain octopus.

Viewers will be sure that the camaraderie between the four penguins is the highlight of the film. At times, the movie’s pacing is a bit manic, starting out at an extremely high pace, then taking a dive as it progresses to the end. Despite the jokes and gags being funny, some are a little childish.

While one may appreciate DreamWorks’ efforts to try something a little different from the previous Madagascar films, this one unfortunately did not meet the mark. Although the Penguins are entertaining, kids will probably enjoy it more than adults, even though many references will go over their heads. It’s as though the movie sets you up for a jam-packed entertaining joy ride, but quickly deflates like a balloon.

No question, folks will laugh at the jokes, but as a whole, the movie lacks creativity and emotion, or a lasting impact that many of the other DreamWorks and DisneyToon continuation films (How to Train Your Dragon 2, Cars 2, Planes: Fire & Rescue) have done. One specific problem is that while the penguins are entertaining in the previous movies, this one only proves that they work better in smaller doses. The film devotes too little attention to feature the penguins many of us have come to love and enjoy from the movie and TV series. One never comes to feel that the team was the focus of the show. Case in point: one of the penguins, Kowalski, may as well have stayed in the zoo.

All in all, I must admit the movie is fun and cute, but The Penguins would have been better suited for a summer release to really capitalize on the younger audiences. The Penguins offers a lot of potential; unfortunately, while Penguins of Madagascar finally escapes the rehashed feeling of the Madagascar films with something new, it still proves under-whelming.

As seen also in The Berkeley Graduate

Sometimes Slow and Steady Wins the Race..."Turbo"

Who does not like an underdog story??? 

When it’s all said and done…sometimes slow and steady really does win the race!!

Here is another movie that was totally not on my radar, but ended up being a film that I was pleasantly surprised and glad that I saw. It made my auntie-nephew time that much more enjoyable. As I watched the film, I really did feel like I was watching Fast and Furious (minus the cops, drugs and killing). I mean it is a kids movie right... The brilliant minds of director/writer David Soren, producer Lisa Stewart, and writers Robert Siegel and Darren Lemke should be commended for this original 3D computer animated/sports comedy film. And with an all-star voice over cast including Ryan Reynolds (Turbo), Paul Giamatti (Chet), Michael Pena (Tito), Snoop Dogg (Lion) (Smoove Move), Maya Rudolph (Burn), Michelle Rodriguez (Paz), Luis Guzman (Angelo) and Samuel L. Jackson (Whiplash) you can’t help but the complete movie experience.

I mean who thinks to create a story about A SNAIL whose only dream is to become the fastest snail in the world. Sometimes it’s the simple things that make for a wonderful delivery. And that’s what makes Turbo an awesome story. And when you can entertain a child and an adult with the same movie and they both fully understand, then you have achieved a great deal. 

With each scene, you can’t help but cheer for the main character Turbo (Theo) as he tries to break free from his monotonous snail community and make something great of himself (is that not what we encourage the future to do...). So when this “unexpected accident” takes place who would have imagined that a snail would be granted with characteristics of an actual car like incredible speed, headlights, and a jammin’ radio. Works for me!!

Now let me step away for just one moment and give some “adult” feedback. I must admit the animation is definitely up to par along with some amazing sets and glowing fluorescent colors. The screen literally lights up in every way. Dreamworks did its thing with this one!! Also as mentioned above the film offers a great voice-over cast, and each character provides their own story and piece to the overall puzzle. Turbo is determined and courageous, which is a very motivating quality. I would liken him to a “go-getter”! Then you have Chet, Turbo’s older brother, who offers the voice of reason and the snail who in a sense lights the spark. Also the other snails add another layer of humor and silliness (Whiplash, Burn, Smoove Move and White Shadow) by providing a sense of fear, competition, and inspiration. And then we can’t forget the humans (Tito, Angelo, Guy Gagne, Kim Ly, and Paz), who in this movie play more of a supporting role, yet they offer a foundation and stepping stone for Turbo to make his dream a reality. Some may think that this is another version of Cars (the snails replacing cars), but this story actually can stand on its own. I actually think Turbo gives a bit more depth to this story versus Cars. However, even with all the highlights there was one mildly troubling moment, and without giving it away I will just say, “watch for the crows”… Nonetheless, the humor and entertainment qualities are still all intact.

Overall, I think what made this movie experience most enjoyable was watching my nephew (as well as the other kids in the theater) sit on the edge of his seat cheering on Turbo as if he was in the stands watching him race. That is when you know the movie has done its job. Just imagine hundreds of kids, cheering, jumping up and down, and going nuts over a .....Snail. When it is all said and done Turbo is so much fun to watch, you can’t help but want to break out into a personal cheer, “GO Turbo GO!!”

Turbo is a story that not only kids can have fun watching, but adults can learn a thing or two from it as well. There’s the obvious brotherly love and support angle from Turbo & Chet as well as Tito and Angelo, you gotta love that.  In addition, there’s the “Do You” theme that seems resonate throughout the whole film. All in all, even after watching this I began thinking are accidents really just that, or is it incident that is really supposed to happen (something to ponder on). And if nothing else, hard work and dedication can produce solid and formidable results…Needless to say, sometimes all it take is just a dream and vision to make it become a reality.

So take your kids, matter fact take the whole family, and enjoy the ride!!

Rating: 8.5 out of 10 stars