DVD Corner

Khumba Blu-ray Review

“Khumba” is a highly unoriginal animated film.

Set in the Karoo Desert, “Khumba” revolves around the titular character who is a young zebra born with only half of his stripes. Due to his peculiar appearance, Khumba has predictably been mocked all of his life. When a drought hits Khumba’s home territory, he sets out on a quest to find an apparent “magic” water hole which he believes will help him get more stripes. As Khumba sets off on his solo adventure, he not only encounters all sorts of helpful oddball animals along the way, but he also faces many dangers such as hunters and the villainous Leopard Phango.

With an impressive voice cast comprised of talented folks like Liam Neeson, Steve Buscemi, Catherine Tate, Richard E. Grant and Laurence Fishburne, one would think that “Khumba” would at least be an entertaining animated flick. Sadly, that is not the case. While the themes about friendship, family, change, embracing who you are, and uniqueness are certainly admirable, the ideas are wasted on story and character elements that are so clearly borrowed from the likes of blockbuster hits like “Madagascar,” “Ice Age,” “The Lion King,” “A Bug’s Life,” and “Open Season.” Worse than that though is the film’s attempts at humor. While younger audiences may be charmed by the characters, seeing (or hearing) visual gags involving sports, farts, a sheep (wearing a ram skull) using a lawnmower, and an Ostrich character singing a song called “Ostracized” (no joke) will likely annoy many other viewers and or parents.

The film’s only saving grace is the above average CGI animation by Triggerfish Animation. While the character designs are derivative of others, the environments and lighting are sharp looking throughout.

Note: This set contains a Blu-ray 3D, Blu-ray, and DVD copy of the film.

Video/Audio:

Presentation: Widescreen 1080p. How does it look? The 3D animation shines in hi-definition.

Audio Tracks: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 and a 2.0. How does it sound? Truth be told, the track is a bit soft.

Extras:
* Millennium Entertainment trailers.
* “Acting Out- Character Evolution”- A featurette about animation and having scenes acted out by cast members.
* “Behind The Scenes Featurette” contains film clips, interviews with cast and crew members, discussions about the story and characters, etc.
* “The Karoo- A World Of Difference”- A featurette on the Karoo location and recreating it via animation.
* “Nora- A Great Partnersheep”- A piece on the weird sheep character.

Overall Thoughts: “Khumba” is a throwaway animated film meant to capitalize on the success of other hits. Skip it.

February 28, 2014 - Posted by nicklyons1 | Blu-Ray review | Khumba Blu-ray Review, Liam Neeson