For a movie that's more paint by numbers than Picasso, Penguins of Madagascar begins with something completely unexpected: a Werner Herzog voice-over.

Parodying his own work and documentary films' obsession with the flightless birds, the German filmmaker gives an auspiciously clever start to a movie targeted toward the under 10 set. It's a little wink to the adults in the audience right at the front.

But don't be fooled. This movie is almost exclusively and unapologetically for tots. Kids will no doubt be amused by the exhausting madcap antics of the cuddly breakout stars of the popular Madagascar films. Parents: probably less so.

The story reintroduces audiences to the illustrious spy team, giving penguins Skipper (Tom McGrath), Kowalski (Chris Miller), Rico (Conrad Vernon) and Private (Christopher Knights) a bit of an origin story before blasting them back into their espionage work.

After an amusing heist, the penguins are taken captive by the evil octopus Dave (John Malkovich). It's revealed that Dave (aka Dr Octavius Brine) is out for revenge against all penguins for being the more popular and beloved attractions at zoos.

The brothers-in-arms manage to break out of Dave's tentacled grasp in an imaginative high-speed gondola chase through the Venice canals. When the thrifty penguins are backed into a corner, they're relieved when The North Wind, an elite special ops team, wafts in for a stylish rescue.

Led by the debonair Agent Classified (a charmingly zany Benedict Cumberbatch), the James Bond-inspired superspies form a nebulous alliance with the penguins in order to track down the diabolical Dave.

The two teams clash over best spy practices, with The North Wind preferring meticulous, gadget-enhanced plans, while the penguins opt for hysterical improvisation. Of course the sweet spot is somewhere in the middle, but, too often, the wacky birds come across as an actual menace.

Penguins of Madagascar has a simple story. The characters are basic, unfussy and barely evolve, and there's no overriding lesson, moral or otherwise, to be gleaned from the tale.

What we do get is a fairly amusing, surface-level spectacle.

(China Daily USA 11/27/2014 page8)