A spin-off of the Madagascar movies, Penguins of Madagascar tells the story of the series’ favorite minor characters: Rico, Private, Kowalski, and Skipper.

The film follows the adventures of the penguins and their secret agent operations. Though the premise is a bit silly (not just secret agent penguins; the villain is an octopus that can shape-shift into a scientist), the movie is humorous and family-friendly. It is also a wonderful stand-alone film, and one would not need to see the Madagascar movies in order to follow the plot.

The movie opens with Rico, Kowalski, and Skipper waddling along with all of their fellow Antarctic penguins. These three are the only ones aware of all documentaries made of them and their abilities to take action, and they choose not to conform to their penguin society after they spot a stray egg rolling through the snow. All the other penguins claim they are incapable of saving the egg because they are only cute and cuddly penguins.

The three fight off sea lions in an old, wrecked ship and save the egg, who hatches to be Private. Thus begins their adventures, disregarding typical penguin stereotypes.

Though the movie was designed for younger audiences, it does contain some easter eggs for older moviegoers. Many actors’ names are also tied into the dialogue (“Nicolas, cage them!”).

The movie also contains a beloved cast. The penguins are voiced by the the same actors who voiced them in the original Madagascar movies, and BBC’s Benedict Cumberbatch voices Agent “Classified” of the spy network that the penguins concludingly work with to defeat Dave, the octopus.

The movie is humorous, silly, and lighthearted, but also contains meaningful themes of non-conformity and the ability to trust and work well with others.