Monday, July 25, 2005

Marching Into My Heart

MARCH OF THE PENGUINS
This movie is a fascinating look at what the Emperor penguins endure every year as they go mate and raise their chicks. Frankly, as I watched this I couldn't believe any penguins existed under these circumstances for very long. The fact that they are still here after thousands of years testifies to the innate toughness of these birds. I highly recommend that anyone who is interested in nature films see this movie.

As I watched the penguins enduring things like a winter storm which brought conditions of 80 degrees below zero and 100 mile per hour winds, I kept wondering how the film makers got the footage. We are treated to just a few glimpses of them in the closing credits so do not leave before you see them. They hint at the movie I'd really like to see, that perhaps we will get when the DVD is released ... The Making of March of the Penguins.

My approval of this movie is not unconditional, however, as there is a fly in the ointment. The movie makers seem determined to elicit emotion from the viewer and use the twin bludgeons of unbelievably sentimental music (which at times is incredibly loud) and relentless anthropomorphization. The movie would have been much stronger with a lighter touch on both which accounts for my rating of ...

***
"Liked it despite the absence of flubber..." - Mel Gibson reading Prof. Frink's review

No comments:

Post a Comment