Life's a Jungle: Africa's Most Wanted

 Review

Common Sense Media says

Tedious Madagascar rip-off with some crude humor.
greenON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
yellowPAUSE: Know your child; some content
may not be right for some kids.
redOFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
not for kidsNOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age.

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Quality
 
Sometimes media can be age appropriate but a real waste of time. Our star rating assesses the media's overall quality.

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Parents say

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Kids say

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that Life's a Jungle: Africa's Most Wanted is a crude and unwatchable rip-off of the DreamWorks film Madagascar. None of the characters are especially likeable and some fall into stereotype territory. In one scene two hyenas pull a prank on a sleeping dog by putting excrement in the dog's paw then tickling his nose so the dog smacks his face with the excrement. There are also shots of this same dog sitting on a toilet, as well as the dog burping to raucous applause from the animals around him.

  • A father tells his son that there are times that sometimes it's better to set free something that you love, in this case, a pet dog into the jungles of Africa.
  • The characters are archetypes (weaselly hyenas, thuggish rhinos), if not stereotypes (female rhinos who speak in imitation of African-American dialect and say things like: "You go, girl!").
  • Cartoonish violence. A dog falls out of a jeep during a safari and lands on his head. Crocodiles snap at the dog as he climbs across a narrow branch over water. A herd of rhinoceroses destroy a village. They throw around bamboo buildings, and one rhino goes as far as to urinate (standing up) on one of the bamboo walls.
  • Not applicable.
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  • The animals throw a party and drink out of mugs with cocktail umbrellas and martini glasses. A crocodile is told that he needs to drink a "frosty beverage."

What's the story?

Pip is a blue-blooded dog from Cambridge, Massachusetts who has accompanied his owners on an African safari. When a bump in the road throws him out of the jeep, Pip is lost in the jungle. He meets two hyenas who mock his dandified "big city" ways, but gains acceptance among the jungle's denizens when he figures out a way to get water out of the river via irrigation pipes made out of bamboo, keeping them safe from rhinos and crocodiles. A party ensues, but when the rhinos see the pipes, they are enraged and attack the huts that have emerged around the water vats. It is up to Pip to try and make peace with the rhinos, so he meets a herd of female rhinos, and plays matchmaker in the hopes that love will bring peace to the jungle. Meanwhile, Pip awaits the return of his family, who is desperately trying to find him.


Is it any good?

 

LIFE'S A JUNGLE: AFRICA'S MOST WANTED is an incredibly boring rip-off of the DreamWorks film Madagascar. Even if the computer animation was decent (which it isn't), there are no likeable characters, the action is at least twice as long as necessary, and the attempts at humor fall flat.

Furthermore, in the midst of the tedium, parents watching this will be subjected to computer animated excrement placed onto the paw of a dog by hyenas who tickle the dog's nose so said dog slaps the excrement in his face. Couple this with utterly bizarre jokes involving flatulence and poop, and you have many reasons to avoid this movie.


Explore, discuss, enjoy

  • Families can talk about bad movies. What makes a movie "bad" as opposed to good?

  • Did you notice any stereotypes in this movie? Why do you think filmmakers choose to use stereotypes for characters? Are they funny?

  • Were there any likeable characters in this movie? What happens to a movie when no one is likeable?


This review of Life's a Jungle: Africa's Most Wanted was written by
Teen, 13 years old
July 25, 2012
 
What a total waste of time
This movie really sucks, the story is really boring and the animation looks like crap. Never watch this.

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Adult
July 31, 2012
 
funny for kids
The Brian Costello review you've read is a very one sided point of view from an adult judging the narrative as if LIFE'S A JUNGLE is being evaluated for an academy award. This is a little kids film, likely ages 3-8 years old. My kids were glued to it and wanted to watch it again. It's funny for kids and has a good message about friendship and sharing. They managed to get in some funny gags and touching moments in between a few "poop" jokes. It's obviously not a big studio flick, made on a low budget, but with that in mind, it's pretty good considering. The film, the animals, and the story are no way similar to Madagascar.

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Teen, 16 years old
November 17, 2012
 
you should avoid this peice of garbage at all times
boring,bland,cheesy,and is totally a rip-off of madagascar

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This review of Life's a Jungle: Africa's Most Wanted was written by
Topics:adventures, wild animals
Studio:Phase 4 Films
Director:Robert D. Hanna
Cast:Jeffrey Lee Hollis, Melissa Lattari, Robert D. Hanna
Genre:Action/Adventure
Run time:100 minutes
DVD release date:June 12, 2012
MPAA rating:PG
MPAA explanation:some mild rude humor

This review of Life's a Jungle: Africa's Most Wanted was written by
 

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