Sunday, November 19, 2006

Happy Feet


Happy Feet is March of the Penguins meets The Inconvenient Truth meets A Bug's Life. Empire penguins meet their mate through song, but Mumble was not born with a good voice but with another gift - the gift of dance (tap dance to be exact). He does not fit in because of his lack of song and because of his "happy feet". He is ostracized and sent away due to this difference.

There are many facets to this movie, which as an animated movie geared towards children, may miss their mark. There are several plot lines as well as lessons that this movie is trying to convey which younger children may not understand. One lesson the story covers is that being different is ok and can be a blessing in the end. This story line was easy to follow. The second lesson is where I think, younger children are going to have some trouble following. The elder Empire penguins think that Mumble has angered the great "Guin" and that is why the fish have gone away. Mumble's explanation is that the "Aliens" (Humans) are to blame. Mumble is sent away and he goes to try to find the Aliens to determine why they have taken the fish. This is a lot for a younger child to understand. There are other mentions of human's tragic and negative thumbprint on the animal world and ecology in general that I feel will be lost on much of the target audience.
With that being said, I do find the movie a fun way to teach the dangers of human's negligence to the environment. Older children will understand the dangers that humans have created in the habitats of the animal world through pollution and waste. The movie is 87 minutes long and will keep the attention of a three year old for much of that time as I witnessed by sitting next to one in the theater. The singing and dancing did help with keeping her attention as did the fact that there was enough room in the aisle for her dance with the penguins and not bother anyone. While it was an entertaining movie with a good message, I would not put it in my top 5 favorite movies. This movie does provide a good soundtrack!

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