Author: Barbara Robertson
Hardcover: 156 pages
Publisher: Insight Editions
Release Date: May 15, 2012
Our Score: 3.5 out of 5 stars
When it comes to animated films, I always love to check out the “Art of” books since they are always the best. “Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted” is definitely no different. The book is extremely colorful and I really enjoyed reading/looking through it. Dreamworks Animation really has CGI films down also including the “Shrek” and “Kung Fu Panda” series. I haven’t seen “Madagascar 3” yet but after reading this book, I am now very much more interested to see it. I also really enjoyed the foreword from Chris Rock, it is a great way to kick off this book.
“The Art of Madagascar 3” focuses on all aspects of the film ranging from character design, development art, and special effects. This really showcases the amazing work that the artists at DreamWorks Animation did for this film. There is a breakdown of every new character from this installment including a very detailed descriptions. Since the film is very location based, there is a detailed concept art showing where the film takes place ranging from New York to Monte Carlo. I also really enjoyed the specific focus on the visual effects from various scenes in the film. This book also doesn’t just include CGI pictures from the movie, literally every shot is a unique drawing from the film.
If you are a fan of this series, then you are going to definitely want to check out this book. It really has a little bit for everyone of all ages. For kids it focuses on the film’s notable characters and for adults it includes details aspects from the artists that brought them to life. The images in the book are extremely high quality and really sharp. The colors are the page literally jump off and look really great. Insight Editions succeeds again with this release. They continue to release great “Art of” books for Dreamworks Animation films and they deliver yet another excellent book.