"Happy Feet" (2006)

Rating: PG

Genre: Kids & Family

Directed By: George Miller, Warren Coleman, Judy Morris

Written By: George Miller, John Collee, Warren Coleman, Judy Morris

In Theatres: Dec 8^th, 2006 

Runtime: 109 minutes

Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures

Summary:

Mumble (Elijah Wood), a young emperor penguin, lives in Antarctica. Like others of his kind, he needs to be able to sing to attract a mate, but he has a terrible voice. Instead, Mumble must express himself, and lure a female through his amazing talent for tap-dancing.

Review:

This came on the TV the other day and I ended up watching it by accident. I never watched it before. Heard a lot about it, and I know a lot of my friends have seen it and say it’s a nice film. 

It’s a good film, there’s something in it for the whole family. Good tunes, a colourful array of characters, and a subtle sense of humour with a good heart. We’ve got the sweet little Mumble, his Elvis-like father, and gentle unassuming mother, a Spanish fast talking group of penguins, and the eccentric Lovelace, and the love interest of our hero, Gloria.  Voicing these characters is a lot of well-known actors, I didn’t realise were in this. Hugh Jackman, Robin Williams, Nicole Kidman, Elijah Wood, to name a few. 

I don’t know why kids’ movies seem to have this fixation on telling kids that there is someone for everyone, and should you not find someone special…well, what’s the point in life? Why do you tell a child that? I just…I think it’s forced down their throats a bit too much in movies like this one. I mean, the whole focus of the plot here is the fact that Mumble can’t sing, therefore he won’t be able to find a mate (at least in the same traditionally way every other penguin does), and the result of this will be catastrophic for him. Is this really a healthy thing to lead kids to believe? I guess they do balance it out by proving that he can be different and still be successful – but sure, isn’t that what most kids’ movies do in some form or another? He still has to use his difference to win the girl. 

My own personal issues with the idea of this film aside, it’s still a very entertaining watch.

Part of what makes this film a success, as well as the story telling, is the wonderful execution of action and animation with its photoreal aesthetic and naturalistic performances. A software called ‘Animal Logic’, an animation and visual effects studio based in Australia was used. The film contained 70% motion capture, which provided a consistency in performance. The film took about four years to complete. The first two figuring out the nuts and bolts of how. And the next two years animating it and recording the voices etc. 

This is a really enjoyable film. Something for lazy Sundays or Christmas Days with the whole family. 

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