Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa Blu-ray

Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa

Did I mention the film is absolutely gorgeous? While it may not come as a surprise to most high-def enthusiasts, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa features a flawless 1080p/AVC-encoded transfer that, quite honestly, blew me away. Colors are vivid and lively, primaries are rich and stable, and blacks are as deep and resolved as they come. Contrast is bright and inviting, perfectly capturing the warm sunlit plains and stark skies of the African plains. And detail? Detail is a sight to behold. Whether it was an animal's fur, a tree's leaves, a stone's imperfections, or an airplane's weathered hull, I simply couldn't peel my eyes away from the screen. Some of you may have grown numb to the visual impact that generally accompanies a CG-animated Blu-ray release, but each and every film hits me like a cold shower stream. The desert floor is littered with shriveled weeds and chipped branches, swarms of well-defined birds flitter in the distance, a hundred-strong herd of zebra are intricately textured, a gathering assembly of lions is perfectly rendered no matter how far the camera pulls away, a swirling pool of lava... well, I could go on and on. Every scene, every shot, every frame looks completely and utterly fantastic.

To top it all off, Paramount's transfer is never disrupted by artifacting, noise, or any other intrusive issue. I caught glimpses of faint (I stress faint) banding here and there, but it was hardly a distraction. I doubt I would have even noticed it if I wasn't looking for something... anything that was even remotely wrong with the film's technical presentation. Mark my words, Escape 2 Africa delivers the animated transfer to beat in 2009.

Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa's noteworthy Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround track is just as impressive. Line after line of crisp, perfectly-prioritized dialogue has been replicated with exacting precision. Character voices and naturalistic effects are meticulously situated throughout the soundfield, low-end bass tones are weighty and resonant, and the rear speakers offer a never-ending parade of ambient and acoustic support. As it stands, the film has more than a fair share of showcase sequences -- the plane crash, Alex's hapless search for Marty, Melman's encounter with a volcano, the unforgettable appearances by a lunging shark, and a dam's violent destruction hit hard and refuse to let go. Maybe it's just me, but it seems animated films tend to offer more convincing and immersive soundfields than the vast majority of live-action flicks. Not only are the track's pans invisible and its spatial accuracy dead on, there isn't a single moment that struck me as strained, inconsistent, or problematic. My sole gripe (admittedly an extremely minor one) is that some of the film's songs are more subdued than others. However, I would imagine their allocation in the soundscape has very little to do with a technical mishap and everything to do with intentional choices made by the film's sound designers.

As far as I'm concerned, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa sounds as good as it looks. Audiophiles will be hard pressed to drum up a complaint, casual viewers will be bowled over by the track's raw power and tenacity, and animation fans will find themselves lost in plains alongside Alex and his friends.

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