Sunday, April 30, 2006

The Wild (movie review)

This Disney/Pixar animation shares the Madagascar premise, but is in some ways more all out surreal.

The chameleon secret agents have the dad lion seriously spacing, thinking he's following his sixth sense when he's really just following them, a far more chaotic lot than the Madagascar penguins (also secret agents).

The cameo dung beetles likewise have a trippy look and feel (Yellow Submarine anyone?).

The father/son dynamic centers around whether either is suited for jungle-based living, complete with polytheistic koala worship and carnivore cults (the hooved ones, jealous of their demotion since Narnia, try to stage a come back -- as if they were ever at the top of our food chain).

Of course I loved the giraffe, and the unlikely crush that develops. Thumbs up for the characters, even if the implausability factor was somewhat overwhelming, even for a cartoon.