2008 Woodie Awards
"Happy Feet" Dances to the Top of the Box Office
Jessica Ercolino
Issue date: 12/7/06 Section: Entertainment
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After 2005's "March of the Penguins," a brilliant documentary detailing the journey of emperor penguins in Antarctica, picked up an Oscar earlier this year, an animated feature with a quite comparable plot may have initially seemed banal. But the continuous success of director George Miller's "Happy Feet" has proven that viewers had not yet had enough of the spellbinding species.
From a young age, the penguins of the featured colony find a "heartsong" within themselves; as they grow, their beautiful singing voices lead them to find their soul mates. Mumble (Elijah Wood), whose anatomy the title serves to describe, can't hit a note or carry a tune to save his beak; he can, however, tap his feet with incredible style (courtesy of legendary tap dancer and choreographer Savion Glover's use of a Motion Capture suit in the studio).
Unfortunately for the young penguin, tap dancing doesn't seem to impress anyone, sans moviegoers, and Mumble becomes the colony's outcast. He finds friendship in five Latino penguins from another colony, and together they set out to discover the truth behind the penguins' fish drought.
The cast of "Happy Feet" is stacked. Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman voice Mumble's parents, Norma Jean and Memphis respectively. Brittany Murphy plays the voice of Gloria, Mumble's love interest. All three actors also do their own singing, hitting impressive high notes in adapted versions of musical favorites, such as Prince's "Kiss" and Queen's "Somebody to Love."
Robin Williams voices two main characters in this film: Ramón, the comic relief and leader of Mumble's Latino friends, and Lovelace, a rockhopper penguin with a Barry White persona. Other notable voices are provided by rapper Fat Joe and recently deceased Steve Irwin, to whom is film is dedicated.
The most commendable aspect of "Happy Feet" is its accuracy. The representation of the emperor penguins is perfect, depicting the elements in "March of the Penguins" with a fictional, toe-tapping twist.
From a young age, the penguins of the featured colony find a "heartsong" within themselves; as they grow, their beautiful singing voices lead them to find their soul mates. Mumble (Elijah Wood), whose anatomy the title serves to describe, can't hit a note or carry a tune to save his beak; he can, however, tap his feet with incredible style (courtesy of legendary tap dancer and choreographer Savion Glover's use of a Motion Capture suit in the studio).
Unfortunately for the young penguin, tap dancing doesn't seem to impress anyone, sans moviegoers, and Mumble becomes the colony's outcast. He finds friendship in five Latino penguins from another colony, and together they set out to discover the truth behind the penguins' fish drought.
The cast of "Happy Feet" is stacked. Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman voice Mumble's parents, Norma Jean and Memphis respectively. Brittany Murphy plays the voice of Gloria, Mumble's love interest. All three actors also do their own singing, hitting impressive high notes in adapted versions of musical favorites, such as Prince's "Kiss" and Queen's "Somebody to Love."
Robin Williams voices two main characters in this film: Ramón, the comic relief and leader of Mumble's Latino friends, and Lovelace, a rockhopper penguin with a Barry White persona. Other notable voices are provided by rapper Fat Joe and recently deceased Steve Irwin, to whom is film is dedicated.
The most commendable aspect of "Happy Feet" is its accuracy. The representation of the emperor penguins is perfect, depicting the elements in "March of the Penguins" with a fictional, toe-tapping twist.
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