Mein Bhi: I had to do this, friends! How long can one continue to live in reviewer-land fleeing from the dal chawal of film reviews? And thus, I fell! On an evening when no fellow Mumbaikar except Zuluman gave telephonic respite, I accompanied a set of doting parents and their kid, to a movie. When I got over the huge ticket cost (Sanjoy, 1 OMR for that cost!), I began wondering what I was doing, at a kid's movie! But then my companions educated me...
"..released worldwide yesterday!
..Nicole Kidman, Robin Williams etc giving voices!
..Warner Bros!
..making waves, with collections rivalling Herr Bond himself!
..about a Tap Dancing penguin!".
'Aah, this is my chance to do an Anton, Manu and Pras at one', I thought! Let me just get back home. But then, Herr F of MS spoiled the party, by accepting the Mouthpad insertion only today!
So, with regrets expressed for the delay (but still this is the first, on Happy Feet!), and with bows to all those who firmly believed I would never do this (fickleness of mind, aah!)...here goes...
Mumble couldn't sing. Can you believe it? Both his parents were great singers, but Mumble still couldn't sing! But every one had to have a heart song, and there was no one who couldn't sing! But, all that Mumble could do was 'hippity hoppity', with his feet. But, "no one did that"!
Before you shoot me for an overdose of Mumbl-ing, here is the crux.
Mumble was a Penguin (Voice: Elijah Wood). Penguins had to sing. But when Mumble sang, glaciers collapsed! (Reminded me of me!) No penguin ever danced, and that too, Tap! But when every other Penguin sang his heart out, Mumble's heart let itself out through masterly tapping of webbed feet!
When there was a drought of fish in Penguinland, it was assumed caused due to the preposterous dancing by the songless Mumble. So, the clan elders (including a tried-so-hard-but-given-up dad, given voice by Hugh Jackman) banish poor Mumble from their midst, despite motherly (Voice: Nicole Kidman) attempts to reverse the decision.
Mumble finds friends in a gang of shorter, but non-conformist and rowdier penguin brothers-in-webs - the Adelie Amigos, led by Ramon (Robin Williams), whose self-praise and antics are a constant riot. They gallivant around, flirt with the damsels, and have the wildest 'unpenguinly' fun! They dare the borders of everything considered penguin-ly possible until then. And, they even challenge the baba of the penguins, he who has a tight loop around his neck gifted by who-knows-who. He who had answers to all questions, except the blasphemous ones of Mumble and Co. So, they decide to find their own answers. Adventurous trails lead them farther and farther, until they realize that Aliensare taking away their fish. But going farther wasn't penguin-ly possible! So,
Mumble goes on alone, only to end up in the clutches of Aliens (Species: HomoSapiens Erectus), who put him in a zoo. But soon, his dancing skills get noticed. What follows is a melee, with antenna-fitted Mumble returning to Penguinland, trying to coax the elders into dancing (as the aliens like it, and will stop the famine!). The aliens soon arrive in a chopper, and when the whole penguin tribe start dancing, the huma-liens join in! CNN, NDTV and their ilk show the world the sights, the subject matter of marine depletion goes higher and higher....well, the fish finally start coming back.
Mumble becomes a legend, and they live happily ever after!
Here is what the high profile critics have been saying on the movie:
https://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1808655509/critic
I tried uploading video of this one, but both .mov and .avi arent uloading, despite 5 trials. So, please do have a look at the video trailers at the link below...it's fantastic!
https://.warnerbros.com/happyfeet/
Amateur's Reco: I say, WATCH IT!
Reasons: 1. If you have read Jonathan Livingston Seagull or/and Who Moved My Cheese and liked them/either, you will like this. If you haven't read them, try this first anyway!
Great music scores, lively and heartfelt voice-overs and stunning cinematography and animation stand out.
If you like big messages subtly sent across through a childish medium in childish innocence, watch this.
Frankly, the eco-conservation bit was a dampener, and certainly the only amateurish and Bollywood-like bit in this wonderful entertainer of under 2 hours.
It is a lovely family experience, though you may, a couple of times, have to turn a deaf ear to the child's queries at some avoidable sexy overtones in the dialogues! But then, you can't have it all, in a 4-starred movie!!
And, don't be surprised if you find all the children tap dancing while leaving the theatre! Even you need a lot of adult restraint to control yourself from doing the same!
Kya karen, Control Hi Nahi Hota!!
.....Amen, as another Amateur likes to say!
