There hasn't been an animated musical this fun in quite some time. George Miller's first animated feature is bursting with songs, which are actually woven into the fabric of the film's world.
Penguins Memphis (Hugh Jackman, FLUSHED AWAY), who actually sounds a lot like Elvis, and Norma Jean (Nicole Kidman, MOULIN ROUGE), who sounds a tad like Marilyn Monroe, have a son named Mumble (Elijah Wood, LORD OF THE RINGS). In their penguin world, each member of their society must find their heart song, so they can woo a mate. Right from birth, Mumble has his eyes on Gloria (Brittany Murphy, 8 MILE), who has some serious pipes. However, Mumble sings worse than I do (ask my wife she can tell you all about it), so he is made an outcast. Alienating him even more is his "happy feet." He was born with the need to tap dance; it's his form of expression.
Noah the Elder (Hugo Weaving, THE MATRIX) wants none of this dancing to infect their culture, going as far as blaming the recent lack of fish on Mumble's odd ways. Feeling pretty low, Mumble meets Ramon (Robin Williams, ALADDIN) and his pals from another group of penguins. They love Mumble's fancy footwork. So Mumble decides to head out into uncharted land to find out what is causing the decease in fish and he's certain it's aliens, who have big machines that look awfully like steam shovels.
At first, it took me some time to get use to the world of penguins singing R&B and hip-hop. I actually never got use to Memphis and Norma Jean's voices. However, when Mumble sets out on his journey, the film takes off like a rocket. Much like MOULIN ROUGE, HAPPY FEET takes contemporary music and weaves it into the story. The songs come to symbolize each of the characters' personality.
Mumble's tap dancing is just too different for the rules of his society to tolerate. The core theme of "being yourself" has been done many times before, but Miller, along with fellow writers Warren Coleman, John Collee and Judy Morris, works its theme into a unique and exciting world. Mumble's struggle and journey is compelling and the ending is just the right note. Additionally, the film is also quite funny. Williams can be too much sometimes, but here he has a well-defined character and stays with it. He's playing a role, not just doing his shtick. Moreover, Miller works in some adult themes regarding religion and the environment.
Once I got use to singing and dancing penguins that at times look quite real, the film won me over. It's fun, intelligent, well-written and a great entertainment. It's tagline is "Warning: May Cause Toe-Tapping." I caught myself doing just that.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
