The name of a hippopotamus from Madagascar. What is the name of the lion from “Madagascar” – the name and interesting facts from the life of a favorite children’s character

New York Zoo. Animal friends live here: the narcissistic lion Alex, the dreamy zebra Marty, the hippopotamus Gloria and the always sick giraffe Melman. Friends live very well - they are well fed, they have excellent living conditions. In addition, all of them, except Alex, were born in a zoo (but he doesn’t remember life outside it) and therefore don’t even imagine what it’s like wild nature. Only the zebra Marty periodically thinks philosophically about how their whole life goes by day after day, and there is nothing interesting in it.

One day, Marty saw a company of penguins (Skipper, Kowalski, Private and Rico) from the same zoo secretly digging an underground passage and learned that they had decided to escape into freedom. Marty gets excited about this idea and also runs away to the city. His friends decide to catch up with him and bring him back to the zoo. Alex, Gloria and Melman run out to New York. They take the subway to Central Station, where they meet Marty, who is about to leave from there to another state. Naturally, they fail to remain unnoticed. The police arrive at the station, and the animals are tranquilized with sleeping pills.

All four wake up in boxes on the ocean cargo ship, during transportation to one of the national nature reserves Kenya, they are being sent to Kenya because all four, according to animal rights activists, need freedom. While sitting in the boxes, Marty and Alex begin to argue; at the same time, the penguins, having easily climbed out of their cage and seized power on the ship, turn it towards Antarctica. The ship tilts heavily during a change of course, boxes with Marty, Alex, Melman and Gloria fall into the water; they are washed up by the surf on the coast of Madagascar. Characters of the cartoon "Madagascar"

Having got out, the friends have no idea that they are on a completely different continent. They believe they are in the San Diego Zoo. But soon the local lemurs, whom Alex accidentally saved from the foss, reveal the situation to them. Marty was very pleased - he got what he wanted - freedom. However, the lion, spoiled and accustomed to comfort, Alex is very angry - he wants to go back to the zoo. Then the lemurs make something like a deal with them: Alex protects them from the foss, and they, the lemurs, in turn, provide the travelers with conditions of comfort and care. And everything would be fine, but because of hunger, Alex begins to imagine that everyone around him is schnitzel, and he can’t help himself. However, the friends manage to get out of the situation, so much so that the fossa lemur hunters were scared, and Alex was full, having eaten the fish caught and cooked by the penguins who arrived in Madagascar.

The ending of the cartoon is that the penguins remain in Madagascar, and Marty, Alex, Melman and Gloria, boarding a ship that was previously hijacked by the penguins off the coast, decide to travel the world. The penguins, sitting in armchairs, wave their wings after a ship going out to sea, and a dialogue takes place between them, last phrase which became winged:

Hey Skipper. Should I tell them that we have no fuel left?

Nope! Let's smile and wave, guys. Smile and wave!

Characters Main article: List of Madagascar cartoon characters

Alex the Lion, Marty the Zebra, Gloria the Hippo, Melman the Giraffe, Phil and Mason the Chimpanzee, Skipper the Penguins, Private Kowalski, Rico King Julian, Maurice, Mort.

Madagascar - amazing place. Some scientists consider it part of a giant continent that sank to the bottom of the Indian Ocean thousands of years ago.

That is why the island is distinguished by its unique flora and fauna: there is nothing like it not only on the nearest continents, but throughout the world. For example, only in Madagascar are there lemurs - cute primates with with huge eyes and fluffy tails. They are charming - but also full of secrets...

Madagascar Horde

Despite their relatively modest range, limited to their native island, there are a lot of lemurs. This is not only a very numerous brethren, zoologists distinguish a lot of species, subspecies, families and subfamilies. Yes, they are also multiplying - new species are emerging! In 1999, there were 31 species, and in 2008 there were as many as 97!

There are, as they say, lemurs for every taste: ring-tailed lemurs, mouse lemurs, dwarf, woolly, thin-bodied, hand-footed... Some of them are strict vegetarians and cannot digest anything except leaves and berries. Others are omnivores - they enthusiastically hunt beetles and pick out juicy larvae from the bark of trees. Most lemurs are solitary, active only at night, but some, such as ruffed lemurs, prefer a diurnal lifestyle and live in groups of up to twenty individuals.

It would seem that after decades of studying Madagascar, it was possible to find, measure and weigh every single wet-nosed primate, compiling the most detailed list. But year after year, lemurs turn out to be more cunning than scientists, throwing them fresh surprises. Here you go, July 27, 2013 - another completely the new kind lemurs This time - . main feature- incredible mastery of camouflage.

Rat lemur Lavasoa

Evolution in isolation

Lemurs fascinated people so much that the same mythical continent, of which Madagascar may once have been a part, was named after them. Its name is Lemuria, the country of primates. The hypothesis about its existence was first put forward by the British zoologist Philip Sclater in the middle of the 19th century, and Friedrich Engels generally assumed that it was on Lemuria that an intermediate link between ape and man lived. The theory about the existence of a mysterious continent was partially confirmed by Indian legends about the cities of gods and demons that sank in Indian Ocean.

Lemuria is believed to have been destroyed by earthquakes and volcanoes about 12,000 years ago. However, unlike Atlantis, no serious expeditions were ever sent to search for it, and it remained a beautiful legend.

The majority of researchers believe that Madagascar separated from Africa about 160 million years ago, and from India about 70 million years ago. Around the same time, the ancestors of lemurs moved to new land, and so they remained there. The free life of ancient lemurs was facilitated by humid climate, abundant vegetation and absence of enemies. Now largest predator Madagascar's fossa is barely larger than a large domestic cat. Millions of years ago, of course, the predators of Madagascar were somewhat larger, but lemurs could also boast of their giants.

One of the extinct species - megaladapis- was the size of a person and weighed about 200 kilograms! In appearance and habits, this primate was more like a sloth and lived in trees, but hypotheses were put forward that it could lead a land and even aquatic lifestyle.

Megaladapis managed to live until the time when people sailed to Madagascar, but this did not benefit the huge lemurs. This is evidenced by the fact that their bones are now often found in the same layers of sediment as the pottery in which they were cooked.

What's in a name?

In general, it is difficult to name the appearance of man in Madagascar happy event. Once upon a time there was a closed ecosystem, Homo sapiens arrived, began to establish their own rules, poke their noses everywhere and try everything. The result is predictable: not all of Madagascar’s original inhabitants survived; many species disappeared from the face of the earth.

However, having killed and eaten all the giant lemurs, people came to their senses and began to look closely at the survivors strange creatures. Over time, they learned to respect lemurs - and even revere them as sacred creatures.

Indri, they are also babakoto, are the largest lemurs of the island, a kind of black and white Cheburashka with short tails. They are active in daytime, love sunbathing, and in the mornings they sing shrill songs, declaring rights to their territory. Malagasy - residents of Madagascar - for a long time They thought that indris prayed to the sun and were vessels for the souls of the dead.

They were not worshiped, but hunting them was strictly taboo: it was believed that by killing an indri, you were killing one of your fellow tribesmen. Also among the Malagasy there is a legend about two brothers, one of whom began to cultivate the land on the plain, and the other remained in the forest. The farmer turned into the first man, and the forest dweller into the first indri. Since then, the Indris have been singing at dawn, mourning their lost brother.

There is a funny theory that the word "indri" in the native language translates to "here he is" and is a classic example of a mistake in communication between explorers and natives. It may be wrong, just like similar story about the word “kangaroo”, but local tribes prefer to call these lemurs babakoto, which means “ancestor”.

With the word “lemur” itself the situation is even more remarkable. Translated from Latin, lemures (which is read exactly as “lemur”) is a night ghost that brings misfortune and evil. IN Ancient Rome There were even “holidays of the dead,” “Lemuria,” which were held on May 9, 11 and 13. During these days, temples were closed and marriages were not celebrated - the inhabitants of Rome tried to ward off the misfortune associated with terrible lemurs.

It should be noted that in Russia the word “larva” is more common for Roman wights, and “lemurs” have finally established themselves in the meaning of cute furry animals. And yet, imagine what kind of imagination you need to have in order to impose on absolutely harmless tiny primates the image of monsters from the other world and name them accordingly. It gets ridiculous: it is the lemurs in the last act of Faust who plot intrigues together with Mephistopheles...

Question of the future

The cartoon “Madagascar” from DreamWorks contributed a lot to the good cause of popularizing lemurs. Lemurs were not only shown there in all their glory, but also endowed with hilarious characters, somewhat reflecting their real habits.

On the island itself, by the way, the cartoon was banned for a long time political reasons. One of the main characters ring-tailed lemur Julian, was the “self-proclaimed king of the lemurs,” and the problem of self-proclaimed rulers in real Madagascar was extremely acute.

Unfortunately, in the XX and XXI centuries Problems with politics are developing into problems with the environment. The Malagasy are poor, and their birth rate is high, so they are forced to develop territories in the ancient ways - by burning forests for arable land. From the original forest cover of Madagascar to this moment no more than 15% remains, and it continues to decline. And along with it - a population of lemurs. They cannot even be brought to the nearest continents - they will not take root. Being a unique, endemic animal is very honorable, but also very inconvenient.

It is unknown what the future holds for lemurs. Sometimes the world changes faster and in completely different ways than we can imagine. We must not forget that humanity itself came down from the trees not so long ago. Perhaps the ancient Malagasy were right, and people are closer to lemurs than it seems at first glance. Perhaps one day we will hear the singing of the indri at dawn - and discern in it the sounds of our own soul.

Sergey EVTUSHENKO

In Madagascar, King Julian is the self-proclaimed leader of the lemurs. Ruling over a large colony, he uses his charisma and likes to tell those around him what they should do. However, he appears to be more intelligent and thoughtful compared to other lemurs (except Maurice). This is especially noticeable when everyone, with the exception of Julian, panics at one word.

King Julian throws parties for his people in Madagascar quite often, and acts like a child.

Hero and plot

When Alex and his friends arrived in Madagascar, Julian and his subjects were enjoying one of their parties. Their appearance frightened the fossa, and the lemurs saw this, hiding in the trees. After this, King Julian held a meeting of the lemurs and other jungle creatures and stated that if they could become friends with Alex and his friends, the foss would stop threatening them. Maurice was skeptical about this plan, but Julian insisted. It became obvious that this was not very good idea, when Alex started getting out of control and tried to kill the lemurs (since he needed the meat). Despite the fact that the situation ended well, and the fossa actually ceased to threaten the lemurs, it became obvious that Maurice was right.

"Madagascar-2" - continuation of the story

In the second part of the cartoon, the lemur king Julian (along with Maurice and Mort) decided to accompany Alex, Marty, Gloria and Melman to New York on a plane "repaired" by the penguins. When a plane crashes in Africa, Julian lands by parachute, but loses his crown in the process.

Arriving in Africa, the king initially believes that they are in New York and makes himself a new crown. He manages to gain some power, but very few characters pay attention to him. First he gains the trust of a flock of flamingos, and then he begins to command the ostriches, and finally he tries to impress an elephant. Later, when the watering hole dries up, King Julian invites the animals to sacrifice to the "water gods" on the volcano. To convince the masses, he feigns a conversation with the Deity and convinces Melman to voluntarily sacrifice himself, since he believed that he would die soon in any case. But when Melman realized that he would live, he refused to be a victim, ruining all of Julian's plans.

However, the shark that Marty was trying to escape from falls into the volcano, and everyone saw the water return to its original places as King Julian emerges from the volcano. In fact, this was due to the fact that Alex and Zuba destroyed a dam built by tourists, but the king of the lemurs remained convinced that they loved seafood more.

"Madagascar-3": adventures again

In the third part, Julian also appears regularly, and behaves quite irritably. He continued his journey with the four beasts from New York with only one goal - to expand the borders of his kingdom. In fact, only Marty and Maurice truly believe in his abilities and respect him as a leader, the rest simply allow him to constantly proclaim his own decrees. However, the plot of the cartoon also shows that he can be a completely reliable ally, since he saves various characters more than once.

Skipper is the main character in the animated film "Penguins of Madagascar". He is the leader of his team because he has extensive military experience. Outwardly he seems like a stern warrior, but at heart he is a simple good-natured man. Sometimes he even shows fatherly concern for Private. The skipper in his squad is the most courageous and decisive. However, he is wary of injections. This penguin can also surprise you with his ability to play the guitar. Despite his kind heart, he, like most people, has a list of enemies. After all, he thinks that friends are enemies who did not have time to prove themselves in this role. And in general, Skipper does not particularly perceive other animals, since he considers penguins the most successful species of living organisms.

Kowalski

Kowalski is a character from the cartoon "Penguins of Madagascar". He has a melancholic temperament. He thinks, analyzes and systematizes all the time. And he uses this in all types of activities, even those that do not need it. He does not hide his intelligence and intelligence, and also despises less intelligent penguins. He convinces others that being strong is not as important as being smart. Kowalski is popular among penguins for his inventions. After all, he is capable of inventing everything that is possible. Even the Skipper needs his help from time to time. However, he does not allow the inventor to bring his inventions to life, since these things threaten the lives of others. And sometimes it’s quite difficult to do without them...

Prapor (Private)

Prapor is the youngest of the entire penguin team. He vertically challenged and the plumpest one. The authoritative Skipper is looking after him. Private's character is kind, sentimental, and a little insecure. He always asks a lot of questions that seem a little strange. Prapor enjoys learning something new. Unlike other penguins, he thinks outside the box. He is unable to solve problems by force, but at these moments his intelligence kicks in. It is she who helps to emerge victorious from current situations.

Rico is the hero who speaks the least. But at the same time he does a lot. He loves to deal with explosive devices and destroy everything in his path. He is considered a rather strange penguin, and his work is dangerous. In this he is similar to Kowalski. Although the latter does not think so and treats Rico with disdain. Rico is quite an emotional penguin. He has the skills to handle various kinds objects and weapons. At any moment he can swallow them and, if necessary, burp them. This is what makes it special. The penguin team enjoys using Ricky's large stomach, which holds the necessary ammunition and projectiles.

Madagascar is a famous cartoon from DreamWorks Animation, released in 2005. The animation was directed by Eric Darnell and Tom McGrath. Before working on Madagascar, Eric Darnell directed only one animated film, Ant Antz (1998). When Darnell was invited to the Madagascar project, the director was developing the cartoon Roskumentary, where the main characters were penguins. As a result, Eric Darnell transferred them to Madagascar, but as minor characters.

The cartoon was originally called " Wild life", and only then received the name "Madagascar". All parts turned out to be successful from a commercial point of view. If in the first and second series of the franchise the story is connected with the island of Madagascar, then in the third it does not appear at all. Initially, the animation was conceived without a sequel, but in the wake of the popularity of “Madagascar” it received a second and third part. Now work in progress on the fourth cartoon in the franchise. Also, the creators do not deny that Madagascar 5 will appear in the future.

Madagascar 1

The cartoon "Madagascar 1" became the first part of the famous franchise. The action takes place in the New York Zoo, where Alex the lion, Marty the zebra, Gloria the hippopotamus and Melman the giraffe live carefree. Local penguins decide to escape from the zoo and go to their native Antarctica. Marty follows them too. Alex, Gloria and Melman decide to bring their friend back, but by chance they end up on a ship on the high seas. Boxes with animals fall into the water, and soon they wash up on the shores of Madagascar. Thus, Alex, Marty, Gloria, Melman and a group of penguins find themselves free in the wild jungle.

At first, the animals, accustomed to greenhouse conditions, do not know how to survive, and besides, the peace-loving Alex suddenly awakens his hunting instinct and wants to eat Marty. Then the whole company meets the local residents - lemurs led by King Julian. Lemurs lead a carefree lifestyle, which is disturbed from time to time by local predators - the evil fossa.

At one time the cartoon was banned on the island itself. It was believed that Julian was a parody of local leaders

Friends enter into battle with them, defending themselves and the lemurs, and win thanks to Alex. However, a lion cannot live in wild conditions, so the whole company decides to go home. At this moment, the penguins appear again, having stolen a ship from somewhere. They save Alex from hunger by feeding him fish. At the end of the cartoon "Madagascar" it becomes known that the fuel on the ship has been used up, so new adventures await the animals.

The cartoon "Madagascar 1", released in 2005, turned out to be commercially successful. With $75 million spent on it, it grossed $532 million.

Madagascar 2

The cartoon "Madagascar 2" was released in 2008. This time, four friends - Alex, Marty, Gloria and Melman - are thrown into Africa. Four penguins, as well as lemurs Julian Maurice and Mort, go on this adventure with them. Alex finds his father - Zuba, the leader of pride of lions. Gloria finds herself in the company of hippos and is courted by the popular hippo Moto-Moto. Melman at this time begins to work as a doctor and achieves great success in this matter. And Marty finds a herd of zebras and joins them.

Parents recognized Alex by his characteristic birthmark on the paw (which was not in the first part)

At this time, the penguins deceive the car of local tourists in order to use it for spare parts and repair the plane on which the animals reached Africa. Teeth's enemy, the lion Makunga, uses cunning to dislodge the leader and takes his place. Alex is kicked out of the pack, and he ends up with people. Zuba rushes to help his son, but he performs his signature dance in front of people and charms the audience.

Makunga loses his status as leader when he is beaten by old lady Nana in front of the other lions. She saw her bag in his hands (it was specially given to Makunga by Alex). As a result, all the animals get together again, make peace and decide to stay in Africa for a while.

The cartoon "Madagascar 2" became as successful as the first part. With a budget of $150 million, it grossed $603 million worldwide.

Madagascar 3

The cartoon “Madagascar 3” was released in 2012 and again told about the adventures of the lion Alex and company. This time, the four friends leave boring Africa and decide to return to their native New York zoo. However, Alex, Marty, Melman and Gloria end up in Europe by mistake. Animal control captain Chantelle Dubois rushes in pursuit of them. Her dream is to get a lion's head and decorate her office with it.

The friends manage to break away from Dubois and her assistants by jumping onto a train carrying a traveling circus. The four have to lie that they are also circus animals. But the unspoken leader of the troupe - Amur tiger named Vitaly - does not trust newcomers and asks them to perform some numbers. Alex and company decide to make the circus more popular, and together with new friends they come up with a more interesting and exciting show. The circus becomes very popular, and the promoter helps him go on tour to America.

Alex and his friends breathed new life into the traveling circus

Four friends return to their native zoo. But Dubois again attacks the animals' trail. Animals from the circus come to the aid of Alex and the rest of his friends, and together they send Chantal Dubois to Madagascar. Alex, Marty, Gloria and Melman decide to return to the circus and travel the world.

The cartoon Madagascar 3 became the most successful part of the franchise, grossing $746 million at the box office with a cost of $145 million. DreamWorks Animation is also planning to release the cartoon Madagascar 4. The release date is not yet known, most likely the animation will appear on screens in 2018. The creators have not yet revealed the plot of the new part; it is only known that the cartoon “Madagascar 4” will tell about the new adventures of Alex, Marty, Gloria and Melman.

In 2005, the short cartoon “Penguins from Madagascar in Christmas Adventures” was released. This 12-minute animation is dedicated to the secondary characters of “Madagascar” - the penguins Skipper, Kowalski, Prapor and Rico. Together they escape from the old woman Nana, who mistakes Prapor for a Christmas toy. The penguins manage to escape, and together they throw a Christmas party at the zoo, which is then joined by other animals.

The four penguins have become no less popular than the main characters of Madagascar

Then, in 2009, another short film was released - “Christmas Madagascar” (another name is “New Year’s Madagascar”). The cartoon lasts almost half an hour, it tells how Santa Claus accidentally “suffers an accident” on the island of Madagascar, where four friends are still staying at that time. When Santa falls, he loses his memory, so Alex and company take it upon themselves to deliver gifts for the children. As a result, returning to the island, the animals accidentally encounter Santa, and he regains his memory, after which he leaves Madagascar.

In 2013, the short film “Passionate Madagascar” (“Crazy Madagascar”), dedicated to Valentine’s Day, was released. The action takes place in Africa after the events that happened in the second part. The Love Potion perfume, which fell from an airplane and ended up in the hands of the lemur Julian, causes confusion in the relationship between friends. Everyone wants to grab a bottle to sort out their relationship with their significant other. As a result, real madness begins.

In 2008, Nickelodeon released the animated series Penguins of Madagascar. The animated series includes three seasons and talks about the secondary characters of Madagascar - a team of penguins. Together they carry out secret missions on the territory of the zoo, and sometimes outside it. The team consists of four members - captain Skipper, inventor Kowalski, demolition man Rico and performer Private (also known as Prapor). The episode lasts from 11 to 22 minutes.

On its release date, November 28, 2008, season 1 of “The Penguins of Madagascar” attracted almost 6 million viewers, which is quite a high figure. The first season consists of 48 episodes. Season 2 of the series “Penguins of Madagascar” was shown on screens from 2010 to 2011 and included 39 episodes. Finally, the currently final season 3 of “The Penguins of Madagascar” started in 2011 and ended in 2012. It has 34 episodes. It is not yet known whether the creators are going to renew the animated series “Penguins of Madagascar” for season 4.

The penguin team always acts coherently and achieves its goal

In 2014, another animated series dedicated to Madagascar was released - Long Live King Julian! It tells the story of the times when four friends from the New York Zoo had not yet arrived in Madagascar. The main character of this animated project is the self-proclaimed king of the lemurs, Julian, and his faithful assistants, Maurice and Mort. At the moment, two seasons of the animated series have been released, the premiere of which has not yet taken place in Russia.

"Penguins of Madagascar"

In the wake of the popularity of the franchise, DreamWorks Animation studio decided to launch a separate project, “Penguins of Madagascar.” The cartoon was released in 2014 and was very well received by viewers. At a cost of $132 million, the film grossed $373 million. The cartoon "Penguins of Madagascar" tells about the adventure of four friends - Skipper, Kowalski, Rico and Prapor - even before meeting Alex and company.

The youngest penguin is Prapor. When the others hatched, he was still an egg

The story begins with the fact that in Antarctica, four penguin chicks are separated from a flock of their relatives and leave Antarctica. From this moment on, they turn into a team of secret agents. In the cartoon "Penguins of Madagascar" the heroes are confronted by the evil octopus Dave. At one time, he harbored a grudge against all the penguins of the world, because in every zoo where he lived, the penguins were the favorites of the public, but he was not.

Dave invents a special serum that will help him make all penguins scary monsters, and no one will love them anymore. The octopus then kidnaps all the penguins from the zoos and tries to carry out his sinister plan. But a team of agents led by Skipper confronts the villain. It also helps penguins special squad Animal Rescue "White Wind" Dave manages to turn the penguins into monsters, but Prapor, who has boundless charm, sacrifices himself. With the help of a beam passed through it laser weapons the penguins manage to return to their former appearance. Dave is defeated, and Prapor is restored to his charm by shining a beam through Mort the lemur.

The main characters of the cartoon “Madagascar” are four animals from the central New York zoo. The unofficial leader of the company is the lion Alex. He is narcissistic, but at the same time very kind. She can dance very well and is a real star zoo and everyone's favorite. The lion from Madagascar speaks in the voice of famous comedian Ben Stiller.

Together with his friends, Alex participates in a variety of adventures

Alex's best friend is Marty the zebra. It was he who wanted to be the first to leave his native zoo and started a mess with subsequent adventures. Marty is an incorrigible optimist and good friend. He is voiced by actor Chris Rock. The third member of the team is the hippopotamus Gloria: a plump woman with a good sense of humor, very cheerful and charming. She speaks in the voice of actress Jada Pinkett Smith. The four also include Melman, a suspicious and insecure giraffe. But at the same time, Melman is a good doctor. He is in love with Gloria, which he confesses to her while in Africa. The giraffe from "Madagascar" speaks in the voice of actor David Schwimmer, known for the TV series "Friends."

And Alex's faithful comrades will never leave him in trouble

In the first part, the four friends meet other characters who have also become very popular. One of them is King Julian from Madagascar. He rules over the lemurs on the island and loves to have fun. Julian leaves his native Madagascar with Alex and company to see the world and seize power in New York. He takes two assistants with him - Maurice and Mort. Maurice is a wise lemur whose main quality is patience. Ready to fulfill all Julian’s whims, although he doesn’t really like it. Mort from Madagascar is one of the audience's favorite characters. Small and very cute, he knows how to pretend to be a kind fluffy and make sad eyes, like the cat from Shrek.

Also, the secondary characters of the cartoon are a team of penguins. They were the ones who first developed the plan to leave the zoo. The names of the penguins from "Madagascar" are Skipper, Kowalski, Rico and Prapor.

Video Games in Madagascar

Based on the cartoon "Madagascar" created a large number of video games. The first one was released in 2005 and received a simple name - “Madagascar”. The game was created in the action-adventure genre, the main characters in it are all the main cartoon characters - Alex, Marty, Melman and Gloria. Also in 2005, the game “Madagascar: Operation Penguin” was released, where the player needs to control four penguins. Interestingly, most of the subsequent video games were dedicated to penguins, although they are not the main characters of Madagascar. Among them: “Madagascar: Zoo Race”, “Madagascar: Penguins Fish”, “Madagascar: Snow Race” and others. Also, King Julian sometimes becomes the main character of video games - for example, in the game “Madagascar: Julian’s Dance”.

Madagascar: music

The cartoon “Madagascar” received recognition from the audience not only due to its colorful picture, but also to its good music. The composer of all three parts was Hans Zimmer, known for his compositions for the cartoons “Kung Fu Panda”, “Rango” and “The Lion King”. Originally, the music for Madagascar was supposed to be written by composer Harry Gregson-Williams, but then Zimmer replaced him. It is interesting that at one time Gregson-Williams replaced Zimmer in the Kingdom of Heaven project.

The famous song from Madagascar, “I like to move it,” actually belongs to the duo Reel 2 Real. The single was released in 1994 and immediately topped the charts. In Madagascar, “I like to move it” was performed by actor Sacha Baron Cohen, who voices King Julian.

In addition, in the three parts of “Madagascar” you can find other hits of the past. For example, “What a wonderful world” by Louis Armstrong, “Non, je ne regrette rien” by Edith Piaf, “Stayin’ Alive” by the Bee Gees.

The first part of “Madagascar” appealed to most of the audience, collecting a very impressive box office. Critics note that the cartoon turned out to be very colorful and kind, and therefore children liked it. But, according to many respected film critics, Madagascar cannot be called a masterpiece. The main reason for this assessment lies in the banality of the images of the main characters and the not very successful plot. According to the authors of the Lenta.ru resource, the animals are not at all attractive due to the originality of their characters. Children like them only because they either behave funny or absurd, or make cute faces. Often all the characters in Madagascar simply blur into one blur.

Animators draw every detail of the characters, literally every hair

Critic Garth Franklin notes that in the first part of the franchise, only the beginning is exciting. It is interesting to watch how animals accustomed to comfort behave in the wild. It's all a bit reminiscent of a popular reality show." Last Hero" But then the scriptwriters seem to not know how their characters can get out of this situation, and therefore they “crumple up” the denouement of the cartoon.

“Overall, Madagascar is full of jokes that we've seen in other films, so the action feels dull and a little threadbare,” critic Erin Clements said.

“From time to time in the first part one can observe references to famous films“American Beauty,” “Cast Away,” “The Twilight Zone,” etc. But these jokes make no sense and are needed only to somehow fill the screen time,” states Garth Franklin.

“Madagascar” owes its success mainly to good animation, as well as some bright finds that can hook the viewer. The creators decided to “stuff” the action big amount chips, and some of them actually went off. Among them: King Julian’s cheerful song “I like to move it”, old lady Nana beating everyone with her purse, a well-coordinated company of penguin special agents, etc.

Madagascar 2 received even more criticism than the first part. Many have noticed that the plot against Alex is reminiscent of a plot from The Lion King. Critic Carrie Rickey writes: "The writers took the flat tire that was once Madagascar, injected it with The Lion King air, and now they have Madagascar 2: Escape from Africa."

The third part of the franchise was also a commercial success, but even the most devoted critics of Madagascar noted that the cartoon repeated the jokes of the first parts, and the characters did not develop, but remained at the same level.