March of the Penguins - A Review of Sorts

I am sure most of you can't imagine traveling an hour in order to find a theatre playing a documentary about the mating rituals and hardships of the Emperor Penguins in Antarctica. Of course, if you know me you have no problem imagining ME doing such a thing.

In fact, that is what I did today after my stint on the telly today. After a rather fun and somewhat unusual morning of juggling, fire-eating, and plate-spinning on the WGN Morning News, April and I set out to Evanston where they were screening the most fascinating, March of the Penguins, every hour!

It is no secret that I am rather fond of penguins. It shouldn't come as a surprise that I enjoyed the film and would recommend it to anyone willing to listen to me blather on about it. However there are some things about the film that bear mentioning here as I believe most anyone, even those with absolutely no interest in Antarctic Penguin life would find this film to be truly special.

If you have any sort of appreciation for the art of film-making you have no choice but to be amazed by this stunning masterpiece. The sheer determination of the Emperor Penguins is rivaled by those of the film crew, enduring well over a year of the most awful conditions on Earth. At times the winter storms brought temperatures as low as 80 degrees below zero and that did not account for the 100 MILE AN HOUR winds. To be able to capture the vivid, exciting and certainly beautiful images was a feat in and of itself.

Next, this film was treated more like a Hollywood love story than a documentary. The story telling was emotional and heartfelt. There were plenty of times where the combination of the music, cinematography, and story being told would bring you to tears, both joyful and sorrow-filled. Even the actual mating sequence was made to look like something out of a modern romance flick, complete with mood lighting and a killer musical score.

There were times of tragedy & times of celebration. You found emotion within the faces of birds that should otherwise not have any hint of feeling or concern. The film is both triumphant and remarkable in its ability to tell a story of survival and grace so well.

You can watch this to learn something about an unusual species of bird. You can watch this for entertainment value. You can watch this as a film student. No matter how you look at this, you will walk away better for the privilege of seeing it. April and I have been talking about the damned thing ever since leaving the theatre and we're already planning on seeing it again very soon. Since it seems to be doing quite well in he theatres, I am confident it will come to a screen near you one day soon. Please, go see this fine film.