It’s a rare thing in Hollywood when a sequel is actually better than the original, but such is the case with Madagascar 2: Escape from Africa. Not that there was anything wrong with the first one, but in the second installment the jokes are funnier, the characters more engaging, the plot more intriguing--even the music is amped up, which is really saying something, because we all know how they liked to move it, move it in the first one. This time around the show opens with our favorite characters, Alex the Lion (Ben Stiller), Marty the Zebra (Chris Rock), Melman the Giraffe (David Schwimmer) and Gloria the Hippo (Jada Pinkett Smith), getting ready to leave Madagascar in an old plane that’s been duct-taped together by the penguin crew. Lemur King Julian (Sacha Baron Cohen, who is every bit as good as Robin Williams now in the voiceover category) and his assistant Maurice (Cedric the Entertainer) decide to come along for the ride. The plane only gets as far as Africa, however, when it conveniently crash lands on a reserve, and at first our heroes are ecstatic to be among their own, until they discover that every place has its challenges. The Black Eyed Peas’ Will I Am does double duty on the film, as the voice of a romantic and rotund hippo called Moto Moto, and working with Hans Zimmer on the score.Madagascar 2 is everything an animated feature should be. It’s colorful, it’s energetic, it’s fun to listen to and to watch. There’s plenty to elicit shrieks of laughter from the children, as well as wry snickers from the adults. It’s a riotous African escape for the whole family.

Rated PG

--Lisa Johnson Mandell