Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

Khumba 3D Blu-ray Movie Review

Variety isn't the spice of life.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman February 18, 2014

It's a big world outside this fence.

With digital animation so prolific and so profitable these days, it's no wonder that a variety of films are popping up out of the woodwork in hopes of capturing a smidgen of the massive marketshare held by the giants like Disney/Pixar, Sony, DreamWorks, and Fox. When the novelty and polish had yet to show signs of wear, when only the big boys were making big movies, there was a certain freshness to these sorts of films; Toy Story, Cars, Madagascar, and Ice Age yielded unforgettable characters, firm stories, great animation, and basic themes covered by a fresh coat of paint. Nowadays, the animated film landscape almost feels like a dumping ground for films that want only to cash in, not capitalize on true artistic merit. Khumba is one of these lesser animated films, a picture that recycles every last animated cliché in the book and without so much as a wink or a nod in the process. It's terribly unimaginative in every way, yet it's colorful and inviting nonetheless, a picture sure to please children happy only to meet new characters and go along for the ride. Adults, however, will likely be put off by the generic plot, stale variety of characters, bland dialogue, and recycled themes.

Those stripes are kinda there...

A young zebra named Khumba (voiced by Jake T. Austin) lives in a fortified, fenced-in world that protects the only water supply in the area. It's for zebras only, but even amongst his own kind, Khumba feels like an outsider. He was born with a bare back, absent the sripes his fellow zebras sport, setting him apart from the herd, and he never hears the end of it. To make matters worse, his deformity is blamed for a severe drought plaguing the region. When Khumba bears witness to a map that he believes will lead him to water, his stripes, or both, he leaves the safety of his home and sets out on a great quest with a ragtag group of animals to what he hopes will be physical and social salvation. Along the way, he's stalked by the vicious leopard Phango (voiced by Liam Neeson) who is convinced that Khumba holds the key to a prophecy that will see him become the strongest animal in the land.

At its center, Khumba uses a half-striped zebra's literal journey to "earn his stripes" as a metaphor for the same thing, with "stripes" substituting for character, belief, potential, and any number of positive-image traits that will allow him to fit in, to find acceptance, to be recognized for who he is on the inside, not for how many stripes he shows on the outside. That's all well and good, a fine message on individuality, self-worth, self-confidence, and getting along with others. The problem is that the story, and the conflict that drives it, never develop with even an ounce of originality. Message only goes so far, and Khumba is proof-positive that relying on old standby plot lines to explore a theme that's already been done to death is a recipe for, at best, a substandard movie experience. Fortunately, Khumba never falls below that threshold. While it lacks freshness, it captures a certain feel-good charm, and there's no escaping the positive energy that flows out of every scene. It's far from perfect, but at least Khumba maintains a decent energy level, enough to satisfy its target audience, anyway.

The technical side of the ledger stacks up a bit more favorably. The film, produced out of the burgeoning South African marketplace (place of origin for the similarly themed and stale Adventures in Zambezia), shows a detailed, determined exterior, one that's not too far behind the modern big boys in terms of image complexity, detail, and color. It's a bit flatter than the best of the modern films, but it certainly looks great, with strong character and environmental details in every frame. The film further benefits from an amazing voice cast that pushes through the pile of cliché and finds a heart and soul in the characters, much more than the straightforward script could have hoped. Liam Neeson impresses as the vicious, snarling enemy while Laurence Fishburne is excellent as Khumba's caring and concerned father. Jake T. Austin finds a center for the novelty challenged lead character, pouring his heart and soul into the voice performance and bringing some much-needed life and rhythm to the character's generic quest.

Khumba 3D Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Khumba arrives on Blu-ray with separate 2D and 3D transfers on the same disc, each selectable in the main menu. The 2D version is preferable to the 3D. It's clean and robust, a touch flat but meticulously detailed and easily capable of showing off the finest textures the film has to offer, particularly throughout the vast and varied Karoo landscape. Rocky textures, vegetation, and terrain look magnificent, with close-ups in particular revealing near stunning imagery. Characters, too, appear well defined and nicely detailed. Colors are even and exacting. Even as the transfer favors a somewhat earthen backdrop, there's nevertheless a variety of bright, punchy shades that offset nicely against the more barren, drought-stricken setting. Darker scenes show strong black levels. The image never suffers from any excess banding or other troublesome eyesores. The 3D presentation retains the best of the 2D transfer with some added depth. There's no perceptible loss of brilliance, no dulling of the canvas under the 3D filter. Likewise, details remain exquisitely reproduced. General depth is satisfying, with many of the film's sprawling South African landscapes seeming to stretch on for some distance. Objects -- rocks, characters -- appear with perceptible volume. Animal snouts appear to gently extend beyond the screen's borders on several occasions. Still, the depth isn't striking, and more confined shots -- and even some medium-distance shots -- don't feel so shapely and real as to truly stand apart. There's a good general sense of space, but this isn't above and beyond the excellent 2D presentation.

Khumba 3D Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Khumba features a steady, well-defined Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack. Millennium's soundtrack hits all of the right notes, creating an immersive South African sonic environment. Gentle background ambience nicely drifts into the stage, making good use of every speaker, front and back alike. Musical delivery is notably smooth and crisp, yielding strong, lifelike notes throughout the entire range, including a positive, strong low end. Action-oriented sound effects -- stampeding animals, falling rocks, and other assorted elements -- play with purposeful energy, placement, and accuracy. Dialogue reproduction is smooth and accurate, flowing consistently from the front-middle portion of the stage. Overall, this is a good, energetic, balanced soundtrack and a quality supportive element of the greater presentation.

Khumba 3D Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Khumba contains a few short extras.

• Acting Out -- Character Evolution (HD, 2:52): A look at the process of humans physically acting out the screenplay to help the digital artists in creating the digital characters. It also examines raw digital character design.
• Behind the Scenes Featurette (HD, 9:52): A broad overview piece in which the filmmakers discuss the core story, its themes, digitally creating the Karoo, voice casting and the characteristics the cast brought to the film, actors physically performing the roles (recycling footage from the above supplement), scoring, the importance of the film in South Africa, and more.
• The Karoo -- A World of Difference (HD, 2:30): The filmmakers discuss the real-life setting and its portrayal in the film.
• Nora -- A Great Partnersheep (HD, 2:09): Designing one of the film's most unique characters.
• Previews: Additional Millennium Entertainment titles.

Khumba 3D Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Khumba may be charming at-a-glance, funny in spurts, and abundantly colorful, but it's also a rather soulless, cookie-cutter animated film that tackles basic themes inside a tidy, recycled plot of adventure, danger, self-discovery, and acceptance. Even the voices, most of which are lively and a great help to the film, are typecast. There's nary a shred of originality in even a single frame, right down to the obligatory Pop song that runs over the end credits. Still, it's enough to please the youngest audiences. It's a safe movie, one with good lessons and plenty of colorful cheer. Adults, on the other hand, will likely find the movie a bore and find quick disdain for the absence of novelty. Millennium Entertainment's Blu-ray release of Khumba does offer strong video and audio. A few extras are also included. Recommended for the youngest of viewers.