Like the classic animated Disney movies from decades ago – “Bambi” or “Dumbo,” for example – “Happy Feet” isn’t afraid to get a little serious, a little dark. It isn’t afraid to mix in some substance with its style.
That’s also precisely what makes it so different from the large number of computer-animated movies that have come storming into theaters this year. You’ve got your all-star voice cast (Elijah Wood, Nicole Kidman, Robin Williams, Hugh Jackman), your soundtrack that’s chock full of pop tunes (Prince, Beach Boys, Stevie Wonder), and of course, your talking animals.
This time, they’re penguins – and they’re cute. Irresistible, actually, just as they proved to be in the Oscar-winning documentary “March of the Penguins.” (You’ll see several images in “Happy Feet” that also appeared in that film, though as director/co-writer George Miller says, his movie was in the works long before “March of the Penguins” came out.)
Miller and his team vividly bring to life the penguins’ mating process in Antarctica: choosing a partner; laying an egg; the the father protecting it from blizzard conditions; and the mother eventually returning with food. The visuals can be both intimate and breathtakingly grand. The filmmakers sent two crews to the Antarctic to capture lighting, textures and landscape details to better recreate them; the results are dazzling, unbelievably tactile.
All that work, though, supports a story that has real meaning, that can be deeply poignant, and isn’t just a nonstop, madcap frenzy of color, noise and cutesy pop-culture references.
This should come as no surprise from Miller, a three-time Oscar nominee who co-wrote and produced “Babe.”
Young Mumble (Wood) is different from the rest of the penguins, the result of being briefly exposed to the elements while still in his shell. He’s incapable of belting out his own unique song, something inside every penguin and something his parents both possess: His father, Memphis (Jackman), is an Elvis sound-alike; his mother, Norma Jean (Kidman), has that sexy, breathy Marilyn Monroe thing going.
The one talent he’s had since day one, his dancing ability, is deemed weird among the other penguins.
So the goodhearted Mumble is nonetheless a total outcast – though he should be the most popular, with Savion Glover providing his tap moves through motion-capture animation.
Once the fish supply becomes sparse, Mumble begins to think some outside force is to blame, but the elders won’t listen and ultimately use his outspokenness as an excuse to exile him for good.
He’s not alone for long. Mumble quickly meets a bunch of Latino penguins who are wowed by his dance moves. They think he’s cool. And with his new amigos, led by the cocky Ramon (Robin Williams), he’s happy and confident for the first time.
But he’s still curious to find out what’s happened to the fish, and he becomes even more suspicious after visiting Lovelace the guru (Williams, again), who provides only cryptic answers.
“Happy Feet” follows Mumble on a journey of discovery, of himself and the world, which can be both harrowing and thrilling.
The movie feels more filmic than most animated offerings, a refreshing change for adults. Kids will still love it, though, and many were dancing at their seats during a recent screening.
Everything wraps up a bit too neatly, and the eco-friendly message may seem too pat. But these are small things to forgive in what is otherwise easily the best animated film of the year.
Unlike the other emperor penguins, Mumble’s (voiced by Elijah Wood) joy comes from his tapping feet rather than his beak in “Happy Feet.”
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