'Penguins of Madagascar' Movie Review: Best And Worst Moments Of The Film [WATCH VIDEO]

Actor Benedict Cumberbatch, who voices "Classified", poses with the character "Skipper" at a press line for the movie "Penguins of Madagascar" during the 2014 Comic-Con International Convention in San Diego, California July 24, 2014. Reuters/Mario Anzuoni

"Penguins of Madagascar" which is distributed by 20th Century Fox was shown in the U.S. and Canadian theatres on Nov. 26, 2014. It was also shown in the UK on Dec. 5, 2014. It is an animated film from the creators of the "Madagascar" film series. It features the voices of Tom McGrath (Skipper), Conrad Vernon (Rico), Chris Miller (Kowalski), Benedict Cumberbatch (Classified), John Malkovich (Dave), Christopher Knights (Private), Ken Jeong (Short Fuse), Peter Stormare (Corporal), Werner Herzog (documentary filmmaker) and Annet Mahendru (Eva). Here is the "Penguins of Madagascar" movie review including the best and worst moments of the film.

"Penguins of Madagascar" was directed by Simon J. Smith and Eric Darnell. Its screenplay was written by Brandon Sawyer, John Aboud and Michael Colton. The film was produced by Lara Breay, Mark Swift and Tripp Hudson. Its running time is 92 minutes.

Its plot is about a bunch of penguins named Skipper, Rico, Kowalski and Private. They were introduced in the "Madagascar" films. This film takes a look at how they all met. But, the main events happen after the 2012 film "Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted."

It shows the penguins escaping the circus and going to Fort Knox so that Private can buy his favourite snack Cheesy Dibbles, which has been discontinued. It can only be found at the break room vending machine in Fort Knox.

The penguins get kidnapped from the vending machine by an octopus named Dave/ Dr. Octavius Brine. He is a bitter octopus who is insecure because the penguins always steal his spotlight in the zoos.

Thankfully, Skipper, Rico, Private and Kowalski were able to escape, but was chased down and cornered by Dave's squid henchmen. It was a good thing that the "North Wind" elite undercover inter-species task force appeared in time to save the penguins.

"North Wind" is comprised of Classified (wolf), Short Fuse (harp seal), Corporal (polar bear) and Eva (snowy owl). The Penguins want to help them, but they are just shipped back to Madagascar to protect them. The trip back to Madagascar was cut short when the penguins woke up mid-flight and ejected themselves from the plane.

The Penguins, with the help of the "North Wind" task force successfully stops Dave from his nefarious plans of mutating the penguins into horrific monsters that will repel humans. Private even made a touching sacrifice in order to help the other penguins.

"Penguins of Madagascar" is a hilarious, action-packed and entertaining film that complements the whole "Madagascar" franchise. The penguins are adorable and funny. Plus, the addition of Classified, played by Benedict Cumberbatch, adds a lot of spice to the ensemble.

Best Moments:

When...

1. Skipper, Kowalski and Rico saved a penguin egg from leopard seals and it hatched to reveal Private.

2. The "North Wind" met the Penguins.

3. The Penguins and the "North Wind" task force were able to stop Dave's evil plans.

4. The Penguins returned to their normal appearance.

5. Dave got stuck in a snow globe.

6. The Penguins were given their own jet packs and they used it to fly off to their next adventure.

7. Private turned back into his normal appearance in the mid-credits scene, when the penguins went back to the circus.

Worst Moments:

When...

1. Private was captured with the other penguins.

2. Skipper, Kowalski and Rico were hit by Dave's mutation ray and turned into monsters.

Box Office Information:

According to Box Office Mojo, the budget for "Penguins of Madagascar" was $132 million. As of Monday, Dec. 15, 2014, "Penguins of Madagascar" has already earned $175,133,811 worldwide (Domestic: $59,133,811 + Foreign: $116,000,000).

IMDb Ratings:

The Internet Movie Database, or IMDb rating for "Penguins of Madagascar" is 7.2/10 from 7,216 users as of this writing. It garnered a Metascore of 53/100 from 31 critics including Roger Moore of the McClatchy-Tribune News Service, who gave the film a score of 75 and Chris Cabin of Slant Magazine, who gave the film a score of 63.

Rotten Tomatoes Ratings:

According to the Tomatometer, "Penguins of Madagascar" deserves a 72% score. It scored a 6.2/10 average rating, with 63 considering it fresh and only 24 considering it rotten out of 87 reviews. It also got a 67% score and a 3.7/5 average rating from the audience as of this writing.

Critics' Reviews:

"As "cute and cuddly" as ever, and often downright hilarious," Roger Moore wrote on the McClatchy-Tribune News Service.

Meanwhile, Ben Kenigsberg of The New York Times thinks that focusing on the penguins was a good idea and that it could just be the funniest film in the "Madagascar" series.

Audience Reviews:

"I fell asleep! Ouch!" Chrisanne Chin wrote in a review posted on the Rotten Tomatoes website. She gave the film two and a half stars.

On the other hand, Jeff Boam thinks that making a film about the penguins was a huge gamble for DreamWorks Animation and they won. Boam gave "Penguins of Madagascar" three and a half stars.

This movie review of "Penguins of Madagascar" provides insights and an overview of the said film, including its best and worst moments, box office records, audience and critics' reviews and ratings from IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes. "Penguins of Madagascar" will be shown in Australia and New Zealand on Jan. 1, 2015. For more movie reviews and news about entertainment, science, sports, politics, business, finance, health, economics and technology, keep reading International Business Times.

Watch The "PENGUINS OF MADAGASCAR" - Official Trailer Below: