Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1050 in DVD
• Released on: 2007-03-26
• Rating: Universal, suitable for all
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 104 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
For anyone who thought the Oscar-winning documentary March of the Penguins was the most marvelous cinematic moment for these nomads of the south, you haven't seen nothing yet. Here's an animated wonder about a penguin named Mumble who can't sing, but can dance up a storm. George Miller, the driving force behind the Babe (and Mad Max) movies, takes another creative step in family entertainment with this big, beautiful, music-fueled film that will have kids and their parents dancing in the streets. From his first moment alive, Mumble (voiced by Elijah Woods) feels the beat and can't stop dancing. Unfortunatly, emperor penguins are all about finding their own heart song, and dancing youngster--as cute as he is--is a misfit. Luckily, he bumps into little blue penguins, a Spanish-infused group (led by Robin Williams) and begins a series of adventures. Miller has an exceptional variety of entertainment, Busby Berkley musical numbers, amusement park thrills, exciting chase sequences (seals and orca lovers might like think otherwise), and even an environmental message that doesn't weigh you down. Best of all, you don't know where the movie is going in the last act, a rare occurrence these days in family entertainment. A fusion of rock songs, mashed up and otherwise are featured; this movie is as much a musical as a comedy. Mumble's solo dance to a new version of Stevie Wonder's "I Wish" by Fantasia, Patti and Yolanda may be the most joyful moment on camera in 2006. --Doug Thomas

Synopsis
Set in the strange and beautiful world first explored in the 2005 documentary MARCH OF THE PENGUINS, George Miller's HAPPY FEET tells the story of Mumble (Elijah Wood), a tone-deaf Emperor Penguin who is unable to sing his 'heart song', the ritual required to win a mate (in this case, his beloved Gloria, voiced by Brittany Murphy). The fact that Mumble is a terrific tap dancer is completely lost on his tribe, and he spends a rather lonely adolescence as an outsider. His hero's journey involves both discovering his own innate coolness, and, more importantly, solving the mystery of the dwindling supply of edible fish in the ocean. As the latter plot takes over, the film shifts from a touching story of self-belief, to a more urgent ecological plea, but all the themes converge when Mumble's special talent saves the day. The film is a triumph of striking CGI animation, with every frame celebrating the vast and breathtaking purity of Antarctica's tundras, snowscapes, icebergs, and waters, as well as its wildlife. The musical numbers--drawing on pop hits of the last 30 years--were choreographed by Savion Glover, and revel in the joyful if slightly limited physicality of the bottom-heavy penguins. While some scenes of predation may prove too scary for very young children, the rest of the family will be inspired and entertained.

Customer Reviews

Happy Feet - a fantastic film.
Me and my family's four big and four small happy feet have just returned from the cinema, where the feet's owners had a rare treat. This is a fantastic film! Warner Bros and all concerned should be proud of their achievement. Not only is the movie cute, it has a great sound track, is full of infectious fun, is breathtaking to look at, and is suitable for all age groups. It appeals on multiple levels, having both the obvious storyline plus lots of others too, for example about the wrongness of religious bigotry, about being rejected but finding purpose and carrying on, and about real love. It also has a strong eco-message which will register in young minds and hopefully help shape a better tomorrow for the planet.

So, take spectacle, epic scale, thrills, brilliant charactarisation, amazing voice talents, a laugh a minute and incredible feel-good - what do you get? Not just a good film, a Great film!

Everyone should see it, and it should be compulsory for 8 to 14 year olds.

"Happy Feet" set a new level of quality for children movies - a very high one
Me and my 6y old daughter we saw this movie seven times at the cinema (including three times in its Polish version) and we were both terribly impressed. Even as an adult I must say that I felt in love with "Happy Feet" - the stunning image quality, the great story, the impressive music, the very intelligent dialogues, the humour and the message of course. In fact this movie has a double message - the "green" one (have some pity for our planet) and also the one about accepting handicapped members of community. Well, very early you will see that the main hero is handicapped (according to penguin standards in this movie) and his problem can not be solved. Ever. So he has to live with it as has the whole colony. There is more - there are elements about the difficulty of communication between civilisations and the hard choices that face the established religion (yes, there is a penguin religion in this movie) in the time of a cataclysm. A great thing in this movie is that it avoids creating villains in the penguin society - even the most antipatic and usufferable characters have their story and their point. In fact the only villains are predators who eat penguins - skuas, orcas and especially the sea leopard, one of the most impressive (and scariest) creatures I ever saw in a kids movie. The scene with the sea leopard is actually the only one which can really scare the youngest kids.
This is a terrific movie, in which every scene is perfect - nothing can be cut or added without spoiling it. I absolutely do not agree that the second part is worse, in fact, it is one of the most emotional and impressive moments of the cinema and not only children cinema. The travel of the main hero outside the borders of the world, his imprisonment in an alien world and his desperate attempts to communicate with aliens are incredibly described. And the solution of all the problem is actually just a little girls smile in one of the most moving scenes I ever saw.... See this movie and you will fall in love with it. And your children will greatly profit from seeing it too - even if they do not get all the message, they will probably at least start to practice tap dancing, as my kid did....

Happy Feet!!!!!! Animation Of The Year & Maybe Ever!
A film about dancing and singing penguins who find their soul mate through their heart song and a penguin is born who can't sing but can half tap dance. It's probably the most simple yet fantastic plot line a writer could think of. So did the film have the factors to match up? Of course it did but it suprises you as the film wasn't what I was expecting , however it exceeded my expectations and made perhaps one of the best films of the year.

Voice-overs can sometimes be hard to crack with Chicken Little mastering that but failing in nearly all other factors, Valiant was a classic case of wrong voice-overs with Ewan McGregor doing an awful job of the bird himself. Luckily Happy feet doesnt go down this street with all the voice-overs suiting their character emmensely well and suprise you as some can sing well, the only perhaps weak link is Nicole Kidman as Norma Jean, Mumbles's mum.

The animation visuals in this film are dazzling, managing to cross animation and live visuals well without making it seem green screen, Happy Feet makes Cars look like Who Framed Roger Rabbit. The feathers seem to have every detail done with ultimate care, every detail on the penguins and the antarctic paradise are brilliant and theres hardly a fault on any of them.

The biggest winner of the film is the message that Happy Feet sends out, showing the penguins in peril due to global warming, antarctic fishing and littering send you that guilty feeling shivering down your spine, never before has an animation film sent out such a sophisticated message whilst still delighting children and adults alike. Nowadays animation films that have that unique element are worth every penny of your money and Happy feet is simply nothing you will ever see in your life. I shall be buying the DVD and shall watch it again and again with a smile on my face, even if the film sends out a strong message, it still manages to take that crucial first word of the title and give you that same feeling.

HAPPY Feet