Do the animals in the movie really exist in Madagascar?
And what do the Malagasy people think about the movie?
The movie “Madagascar” has been well-received in Madagascar.
Back then it was all everyone talked about and there was an excitement. Finally, someone other than the occasional tourist or environmentalist paid attention to the island!
The movie has showcased the country’s unique wildlife and landscapes, and have contributed to raising awareness about Madagascar’s biodiversity and culture. The movie has also been popular among Malagasy audiences, and the characters and themes have resonated with local viewers. Overall, the movie has had a positive impact on the country’s tourism and cultural representation.
The movie doesn’t have much in common with the real Madagascar beyond the name.
Elephants Zebras and Lions don’t exist in Madagascar
Lemurs and their predator the fossa do exist in Madagascar
King Julian should have been Queen Juliana since the female is the dominated one among the lemurs
Dancing Lemurs – exist! The lemur called Sifaka, known for his distinctive locomotion called “vertical clinging and leaping,” has a captivating way of moving that resembles a graceful dance.
There are no penguins in Madagascar – it’s a tropical island.
The music in the movie is close to Malagasy music
Some Malagasy think the landscapes look cliché and what they see is Americans dressed as cute local animals, doing American stuff in the American “I saw a picture of it on Wikipedia” version of their country.
One thing that slightly bothered the Malagasies was that, according to the movie, the island is inhabited, while in fact more than 22 million of them live there.
The Malagasy claim the studio did almost nothing to connect the movie to the actual country. Neither the studio nor the government did anything much to channel the movie’s success into Madagascar’s tourism or nature protection programs. A couple dozen government higher-ups got a private screening, and that was all. The movie was not even released in Madagascar. Yet, most of them still saw it.
In the end, the general opinion is: small kids still love it as a funny cartoon, not as something having to do with their country and most people quickly forgot about it.