NoFace for Film

Title: Happy Feet
Year: 2006
Director: George Miller
Starring Cast: Elijah Wood, Robin Williams, Brittany Murphy, Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman, Hugo Weaving
Rated: PG

NoFace for Film rating: 6 out of 7

Yes, I know that I should have reviewed Happy Feet a lot sooner, closer to when it first came out, but I only got the chance to watch it now. So sue me

Happy Feet is the story of Mumble (voiced by Wood as an adult; voiced by E.G. Daily as a young’un), an emperor penguin who isn’t like the others. According to the film, emperor penguins seek out their soulmates by singing a “heart song”. Unfortunately for Mumble, a mishap while he was still in the egg causes him to be born tone deaf. However, he has an incredible talent for tap dancing. Mumble’s uniqueness worries the older, governing body of penguins led by Noah the Elder (Weaving), who feel that all penguins must act the same and not be tempted to deviate from unpenguin-like activities, like dancing. Not surprisingly, Mumble feels rejected by his colony and goes off on his own, making new friends and encountering danger along the way.

Now, if this were a simple and straightforward story where Mumble is eventually accepted by his kind, Happy Feet would be pretty boring. But no. You see, halfway through the movie an environmentalist message is introduced. Mumble’s colony is starving because the fish population has decreased significantly over the years. The evidence points to a mysterious group of very tall, penguin-like creatures with front facing eyes, no feathers, and flabby skin. Three guesses what these strange, bipedal creatures are.

The animation looks terrific. It’s astounding how far CGI animation has come. The detail on Mumble’s down feathers, the majestic glaciers, the underwater ballet the penguins do -all of it is just gorgeous. I like the scene where a group of penguins swimming underwater go into formation like the famous Blue Angels. They wouldn’t have been able to accomplish that just 10 years ago. And the scenes of Antarctica are spectacular. I often wondered if they were really computer generated since the images looked as if they were filmed with a videocamera. I can’t wait to see this on HD-DVD.

Happy Feet was funny. There are lots of funny moments for both kids and adults. I love the subtle jokes that only adults will understand, such as the 2001: A Space Odyssey reference. There is some mature humor in it (e.g., penguins singing “Let’s Talk About Eggs” to the tune of Salt N’ Pepa’s tune “Let’s Talk About Sex”), which may not please some parents, but in my opinion young children wouldn’t even understand these jokes and references.

The voice cast was pretty good. Kidman and Jackman, who are no strangers to musicals, do their own singing as Norma Jean and Memphis, Mumble’s parents. They both sound great, especially Jackman, who BTW, does a great pseudo-Elvis impersonation. Williams is no slouch at singing either. He actually plays THREE roles- as Ramón, an adélie penguin and leader of a wacky group who simply call themselves the Amigos; Lovelace, the rotund rockhopper penguin who sounds like an evangelist; and the narrator. He’s not credited as the narrator, but I’m pretty sure it’s him. But the one who surprised me the most was Brittany Murphy, as the voice of Gloria. When Gloria starts singing, I figured that they had a separate actress for the singing, but when I read the credits I saw that Murphy indeed did all her own singing! She’s got an amazing set of pipes!

Some of you may wonder- why the PG rating? Can I take my kids to see it? Do the penguins do naughty things with each other? Like I said- any suggestive humor will go right over younger children’s heads. However, there are some scenes that might be too scary for younger children. One scene has Mumble being chased by a ferocious leopard seal, and in another scene two killer whales attack Mumble and his friends. Also, very young children may not understand the environmental message about overfishing the Antarctic oceans and the damage it’s doing to the local wildlife. I’m thinking that Happy Feet is best for children ages 6 and up.

I thoroughly enjoyed Happy Feet. The animation is gorgeous, it’s funny, it has some tender and sad moments, the music will keep you humming on the car ride home, and I liked the important environmental message.

Technorati Tags: Happy Feet, Antarctica, penguin, emperor penguin, adélie penguin, rockhopper penguin, Elijah Wood, Robin Williams, Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman, Hugo Weaving, E.G. Daily, environmentalist, Mumble