Penguins

"Penguins" (2019 release; 76 min.) is the latest documentary from Disneynature. As the movie opens, we are reminded that this is the 10th anniversary of the Disneynature movies. This latest one brings us the life and times of Steve, an Adelie penguin. He is 5 years old, about 2 ft. tall, and about 15 lbs. As we join Steve, he is on his way to the very spot where he was born, but now looking to court a mate and start a family. This is easier said than done, as he fights for the right nesting spot, which he builds with rocks that he collects. Then a potential mate shows interest... At this point we are 10 min. int the movie, but to tell you more of the plot (such as it is) would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

Couple of comments: this movie is directed by Disneynature veteran Alastair Fothergill ("African Cats", "Bears") and Jeff Wilson. When I heard of this release, my initial reaction was "haven't we seen this before in the Oscar-winning documentary March of the Penguins?". Turns out that concern is unjustified. "March of the Penguins" looks at the much larger emperor penguin, whereas this documentary follows the Adelie pengiun. There is a funny scene in the beginning where Steve accidentally ends up in a colony of emperor penguins and he gets slapped around... by baby emperor penguins (who are still larger than Steve). Once that was cleared up, the only thing that mattered to me was to see how spectacular the footage was, and there I was not disappointed. In fact, the footage is outstanding, and on top of that the film makers lucked out (if that is the right wording--probably they persisted and were rewarded) with some amazing plot twists--I really don't want to say anything more so as not to spoil). Just watch!

"Penguins" opened in theaters a few weeks ago, and I finally got around to seeing it this weekend, yes the same weekend where "Avengers Endgame" came out and dominated the box office (more than 90% of the weekend's business--but I have no interest in seeing it). The Sunday early evening screening where I saw "Penguins" was attended so-so--about 10-12 people, mostly adults I might add. If you love nature documentaries, you cannot go wrong with this. Of course I encourage you to check it out, be it in the theater, on VOD, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray, and draw your own conclusion.

Had a lot of fun seeing this in IMAX on Earth Day. Really funny and entertaining, even for adults. Especially recommended for family viewing, though. Finally, if you're an 80's music lover like me, you'll get a lot of joy from this film. Enjoy!

I guess I watched all the penguins documentaries around .. This one was about a new species of penguins in which I've never seen a documentary about before .. Adelie penguins .. they are a lot different than emperor penguins and they are so very interesting to follow them around, the narrative was pretty funny with a cute little script which made the movie a lot funnier than a documentary should be, but I didn't mind that at all !

Now this is how you make documentaries for kids: cute critters, an engaging story, and charming narration/character commentary from the quirky Ed Helms. With that said, it's great for kids and even adults, but my interest didn't stay sustained for a very long time. It could've been because I was tired but I felt like it went in circles after awhile. Still, a good one.

B-

DisneyNature's latest documentary focusing on the lives of penguins in the Arctic is cute if not a little too simplistic. DisneyNature has been around for several years now bringing out film after film focusing on the wildlife of our little blue planet with the simple goal of informing, entertaining and donating to important causes to protect the creatures that roam this earth.

Penguins is their latest documentary and is fun and charming, detailing the life of a single penguin in great detail. The film is obviously aimed for younger audiences and simply a way of showing penguins doing cute things. The narration from Ed Helms hammers this point home for sure with much of his delivery being extremely whimsical and at times childish.

The film does a good job of documenting little Steve's journey in the harsh landscape showing off all the trials and tribulations he has to face without going over a G rating of course. It's fun watching him scuttle around the icy landscape and it's rather cute. However, this can only entertain for so long before it becomes monotonous and the constant narration from Ed Helms gets tiresome and it's charm wares off fast.

Sometimes I wondered while watching, what sort of direction Ed Helms was given in the recording booth, because sometimes he feels completely lost and it often feels like just rambling. But perhaps this is a minor complaint overall. There's nothing wrong with this and the point of the film is still the same. It's a simple story and simple subject with beautiful shots of the icy landscape, but it doesn't tell me really anything new and perhaps that's the films biggest problem.

The film shows you the life of this penguin and his group, but doesn't give out any new information that we haven't already seen or perhaps heard of in other similar penguin related documentaries. Which this is fine, but I would have liked something a little more deeper.

Penguins in a perfectly fine documentary with some interesting tidbits and wonderful cinematography that should entertain younger viewers, but doesn't add anything new. It is however a film with an important message and cause, by showing us the importance of these little creatures down south and I can't fault the film or judge too harshly for doing something that I think is worthwhile in the end.