"Stop the freakiness with the feet" (Happy Feet (DVD))

Name: scuba_angel

Hello doyoo user, You have to be logged in to use these functions... Login or register Close window

Send message to member

Product:	Happy Feet (DVD)
Date:	22/06/07 (75 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: cute,

Disadvantages: none

Anyone else a big kid? Good its not just me then!

I saw a cinema advert for this film back in October and fell in love with the cute cartoon bundles of fluff that were the baby penguns Mumble and Gloria instantly, so when the film was finally released before christmas I dragged my poor boyfriend to see it with me (poor thing comes home on leave and has to put up with me acting like a 5 year old until he agrees to watch a kids film with me). Luckily on the way out he was as in love with the characters as I was and we went bakc to see it again three more times on the next two weeks (there are unconfirmed reports that he also saw it twice in Germany with women he works with who didnt want to go alone).

So why did one 'rough tough solider' love this childrens film so much? Could it be the very cute characters, the range of music used or the story? Or a comibnation of all three? I think it was the characters but he might disagree.

So the main character is Mumble an Emperor penguin who cannot sing, this for those who don't know is a terrible afliction for an Emperor as they find thier mate through the singing of their Heartsong, instead he can dance. The reasons for this are unclear but Mumbles father Memphis feels he is to blame after an incident while Mumble was just an egg.

Gloria is the cute girl penguin, who names Mumble and is his best friend, despite her popularity among their peers and his misfit status. Her singing is the best in the class. Mumble is also in love with her from an early age.

Memphis and Norma Jean are Mumble's parents, Norma Jean see's nothing wrong with Mumble dancing and loves him for who he is but she is unaware of Memphis' secret. Memphis feels that Mumbles dancing "Just ain't penguin" and believes himself responsible for it.

The Amigos are a group of Adelie penguins lead by Ramon who show Mumble that its OK to be different and teach him to dance to his own beat (with a latino flavour).

Finally is Lovelace, a guru Rockhopper peguin distinguished by the 'sacred talisman' bestowed on him by the Mystic beings with which he advises the other penguins.

******There may be spoilers here*********
While Mumble is growing up there is a fish famine affecting Emperor Land. After his peers graduate penguin school they hold a party but poor Mumble cant help but sing along and after his singing brings the merriment to a halt he is forced to leave and on his lonely ice pad floats away from the group. After a brush with another hungry predator he meets the Amigos who teach him that to dance and be himself is by far the most important thing of all, so with their help he returns to try and win Gloria's heart.

Sadly with his dancing feet and horrendous singing voice the Emperor land Elders banish Mumble, believing that it is he bringing the wrath of the 'Great Guin' upon them all, thus causing the fish famine. Norma Jean tries to defend her boy but in the face of opposition from Memphis she is forced to watch as he leaves Emperor Land. Vowing to return when he find the source of the famine, armed only with snippets of information about 'Mystic Beings' and 'Aliens' with no breaks and front facing eyes he goes to Lovelace.

This leads him to a journey across the ice to the Forbidden Shore, from here Mumble bravely chases the huge vessels which are carrying both the aliens and the missing fish, calling out to them he is not heeded but after chasing the ships exhaustion causes him to be washed ashore on a beach far from Emperor Land and his friends, he is taken to a Zoo where he becomes a zombie penguin forgetting all he once held dear, until one day a child taps on the glass and the rhythm reawakens Mumbles 'happy feet'.

His dancing becomes his way of communicating with the aliens and in the end allows him to keep his promise to return and solve the mystery of the missing fish, and finally win the heart of Gloria.

**********************************

I think that this film explores many themes which a child would not notice or understand. One being that in order to preserve the naural world humans must learn to limit what we take from nature, can you imagine living in a world without penguins? Had the famine continued that would have been a real possibilty in the world that Mumble inhabited.

Most importantly the film shows that to be different is not a bad thing, everyone is different and everyone has different qualities and has value in society. So being yourself is the most important thing in life there will always be people out there who will love you for yourself.

In the film the music used spans many genres and years but will have you tapping your feet along with the characters on screen (or in my boyfriends case attempting to tap dance for days after). In many cases the tracks were recorded by the cast especially for the film, for example Brittany Murphy recorded a version of 'Somebody to Love' as used in the graduation party scene, Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman also do their own singing. If you like the music a soundtrack is avaliable.

Other famous names whos voices appear in this film are Nicole Kidman (Norma Jean), Elijah Woods (Mumble), Brittany Murphy (Gloria), Robin Williams (Lovelace and Ramon), Hugh Jackman (Memphis) and the late Steve Urwin as an Elephant Seal.

The film has combined beautiful animated sequences with a story which though contains many cliques is not overly sentimental as well as the environmental and political messages which are written in so well it is not until later that you realise they were there at all, and of course it features the gorgeous grey fluffy baby penguins for the all important 'aww' factor.

Also on the DVD are Special Features including two sequences called 'Mumble meets a Blue Whale' and 'A Happy Feet Moment', also a dance section where you can learn to dance like a penguin, finally a 'behind the scenes' feature, and the 'Somebody to Love' music video.

As it is a newly released DVD it can currently be bought for between £13 and £9 but will be found for less than this in online stores soon (if not already).

Summary: Penguins that dance to save their lives