Penguins in March of the Penguins - Movie Review Example

Penguins in "March of the Penguins" In today's confusing moral environment, people look to movies and books that may teach them what to do. The environment is so full of stories that teach human beings a lot. However, these stories may only be seen from the beholder's eyes. Penguins, for example, in March of the Penguins, can teach us lessons from their examples. How we receive these lessons depends a lot on us as viewers. It is important though to remember that birds are just birds, just as human beings are human beings. First off, penguins come in different breeds. In the movie, what were featured were the Emperor penguins, scientifically called Aptenodytes forsteri (Landis 1999). This paper discusses the basic plot, similarities and differences, strength and weaknesses of the movie, followed by some lessons learned, and then the conclusion. An outline shows the structure of the arguments. Matthew Turner1 of The ViewLondon Review (2005) gives the basic plot of the movie thus - Directed by Frenchman Luc Jacquet and narrated (in the U.S version) by Morgan Freeman, the film . charts the annual cycle of the emperor penguins of Antarctica, beginning with their 70-mile march from the sea to their mating grounds. They walk in single file, often travelling on their bellies, enduring winds of up to 100 mph and sub-zero temperatures. When they finally reach the mating grounds, they undergo a series of elaborate mating rituals before pairing off into monogamous couples and mating. Once the egg is laid, the female penguins travel back to the sea, swimming and eating and having a great time while the males are left to hatch the eggs. After two months, the eggs hatch and the females return with food, at which point the males begin a trek to the sea and back in order to gather enough food to keep the penguin chicks alive. What follows are two photographs illustrating separate activities of male and female emperor penguins critical to their reproductive cycle. MEETING OF MALE PENGUINS at more normal times. Emperor penguins behave like a community. In the harsher times of winter, together they brave the storms of their environment. After the storms, it is the same. These are the fathers who take care of the eggs and nurture them to chicks and until the mothers come back. The mothers have gone back to sea to eat and would take them about two months to return.2 Photo credits: Yahoo MOTHER PENGUINS TRAVEL BACK TO SEA. After delivery, the mother penguins would entrust their eggs to the father penguins and would need to go back to sea to eat or else would die. The travel is not that easy as it takes them to coast ice glaciers of some distance. Most of the time, they travel by foot. When they get tired, they use their stomachs and slide by the ice glaciers.2 Photo credits: Yahoo Thesis. There are differences between human beings and penguins, but there are also similarities that echo much human experiences of love and loss. Penguins,3 however, are just birds and so should be assessed as birds and not something that should model for human beings. Similarities and differences. In March of the Penguins, the similarities and differences between man and penguin were clearly marked. The similarities mainly centered on rearing habits and mother instincts. Like human beings, penguins are warm-blooded vertebrate bipeds that reproduce sexually from male and female intercourse. They also rear their offspring to maturity as couples, very much reminiscent of domestic concerns (Greydanus 2006). This penguin concern extends to filial relationship and parent feelings for the offspring. The mother instinct in the movie is partially exemplified in the mother penguin trying to steal another's chick in an effort to replace her lost chick. It is hilarious in that in this episode, it is like the story of the two women fighting over a baby and judged by Solomon in the bible. Unlike human beings who resort to legal cases, the penguins band together to stop the stealing (Greydanus 2006). Not of the same level and dimension, mother-child bonding exists as well as for birds. It does not appear far-fetched that the suffering of a human mother at the death of a child is something similar to what the bereaved penguin mother appears to be going through. To see a degree of common experience does not necessarily call for anthropomorphism, however. With these similarities, there are also differences, a reminder that penguins are still birds. Humans are created in God's image, bequeathed with rational souls and moral freedom (Greydanus 2006). With the penguins, they just have their animal instincts. For example, in their urge to reproduce, they brave the blizzards and gale force winds over long journey and on foot of over 100 kilometers (Urbancinefile 2008). Human beings would not be doing this. At least, they do not go into a region so bleak, so extreme, in winter for the resolute purpose or breeding. The reason for this is their breeding ground that is to be permanently solid ice (Greydanus 2006). This is not so for men. Man has much control over his environment, but penguins don't. It is as though these birds have been programmed in much of their ways. They have to battle their harsh habitat as that of Antartica to completely protect the precious egg, and later the vulnerable young chick from the elements at all times (Greydanus 2006). Penguin chicks are also independent within a year, whereas human children mature much more slowly. Furthermore, humans can have multiple dependent children of different ages at the same time, potentially prolonging the parental commitment (Greydanus 2006). Notwithstanding the differences in length of time, the penguins seem to be more remarkable than human beings in terms of both parents caring for their egg to the end. This extends to the reversal of roles between male and female as is the willingness of both to endure great hardship to fulfill their strong instinct to reproduce (Keller, urbancinefile 2008), but only for that length of time. With penguins, there is no commitment to speak of, but basic bird instinct to care for the egg until it becomes a chick. This lack of commitment is highlighted when the chick is placed in danger in terms of a predator threatening to grab the life of the chick. This is a critical catch that underscores the difference between man and penguin: the later lacks concern for the other. In one of the scenes, adolescent chicks are attacked by a predator, but they do not flock to the chick's defense. However, when the attack comes from their kind, as during the instance of attempted chick-napping, they are concerned and would not allow it. Impliedly, as long as the predator is outside their own personal space, penguins don't appear to be particularly concerned at all (Greydanus 2006). From experience, it can be told that it is different for human beings. In human societies, commitment has been enshrined in the institutions of marriage and family. Penguins, naturally, don't bother about institutions, and generally choose new mates each year (Greydanus 2006). Strength. The cinematography is absolutely stunning; the grandeur of Antarctica is quite striking. The film is filled with one extraordinary sight after another. The penguins line up as though in a black-and-white outfit to some formal occasion (Puccio 2008). They huddle together for warmth as one of a community. It is remarkable how the crew had persistently tracked the penguins for more than a year (Cline 2005). It is said that the temperatures reach a blazing fifty-eight degrees when the sun is out (Puccio 2008). How could they have braved such situations This sentimental film is said to hold up as a shining example of family values (Arendt 2005). The penguins are shown here how they deal with hunger, rejection, loss, loneliness, and sensuality (Williams 2005), but, of course, with careful interpretation taking note of differences. Weaknesses. Despite the strengths mentioned, there are also weaknesses in the movie. The penguins appear to have been anthropomorphized too much. Yet as a work of art, the film-makers never focus on a particular penguin to root for, which would be the logical extension of that idea. There are no main characters so to speak but only the narrator. From the start, the story is told through the eyes of human beings, equally presenting the subjects as human beings. It is as though the birds were given "hopes and dreams and love lives." (Cline 2008). For example, the narrator says, "This is a story of love. And like all love stories this one begins with an act of utter foolishness." The "foolishness" in question refers to the Emperor penguins cannonballing out of their natural element, the water, onto the ice, where they are clumsy and silly-looking (Greydanus 2006). As for love, it is questionable to count the mate-finding as soon as they arrive at the breeding grounds as love. In the same way, it is also questionable to count the egg-care that penguin parents engage in as love for their chicks. The filmmaker, Luc Jacquet, clearly takes the side of the bird that by the time the movie's over, the audience feels more like living with penguins than with other humans (Puccio 2008). That is clearly the effect. What about comedy We want to laugh, but there is nothing forthcoming. The penguins alternately walk on their stubby legs and glide on their bellies, and it is a bit hilarious (Cline 2005). After the female lays an egg, she rolls it into the father's feet as it were a soccer ball (Proyect 2008). That is all the comedy there is. Although some think that the gentle but weary voice of the narrator is exactly right for conveying the penguins' hardships, for every step of their journey from the sea to their mating grounds, followed by their precarious efforts to keep their young alive (Antani 2006). I particularly didn't like Morgan Freeman sentimental narration. It goes back to the notion of anthropomorphizing the penguins too much. The voice is that serious and in effect appears artificial for one who knows penguins are just birds. For the narrator to say," This is the first time the father has broken his bond with the chick. It is not an easy thing to do," is already going out of bounds. Penguins are still non-human beings. Lessons learned. There are many intriguing facts about this flightless bird. In March of every year, they walk in droves for almost seventy miles which objective is highly to mate. When they do this, their long line across the Antarctic snow looks like a procession of waiters. (Puccio 2008). "Their destination," says the narrator Freeman, "is always the same," but their path is often different because of the shifting ice. How they find their way, no one knows. There is deep mystery in how they manage to find their way. It is just like those of the homing pigeons who home from many miles away, no matter what. In the midst of their hilarious physicality, we find that their Creator has a purpose. The funny shortness of their legs is found to serve them well in keeping their eggs warm and safe beneath them. What's intriguing is how their calls are highly individual (Puccio 2008). We remember that after entrusting their egg to the father penguin, the mothers trek to the sea but they have to return after two months. How do they recognize each other Not much in the same way as human beings where human voices are rarely individual. As each penguin may look almost identical to every other penguin, in the reuniting of the families, they recognize each other by sound, not by sight. Conclusion There is perhaps a tendency to sentimentalize the proceedings in the affairs of the penguins, both cinematically and musically (Urbancinefile 2008). The wailing of the parent chick, for example, over the death of a chick. This social behavior reminds us much of our similarities with them. However, embuing emotions on animals that we are not sure they have is an approach that is selfish. The narrator Freeman glosses over the deaths of tired penguins who can't endure the journey: they don't die; "they disappear or fade away." When a mother's chick freezes to death, "the pain of her loss is unimaginable." And "love can find a way even here in the harshest place on Earth (Gonsalves 2008). There is clearly no way penguins are pressured to be similar to us nor for human beings to be like them. The experience could be something enjoyable but business makes it like it is. With the involved narrator's voice, there is nothing left to the audience's imagination. To my mind, the US version would do with just the subtitles attached in the movie and without the narrator's voice. With that, one could enjoy nature as it is. Notes 1 Film critic Matthew Turner of The ViewLondon Review (2005) gave only two stars out of five for this review, the reason why his version of the plot is presented here. Compared to other reviews, his was more objective by way of his assessment. 2 Captions had been provided by the writer. 3 Penguins come in many breeds. What are particularly discussed here are the Emperor penguins, scientifically called Aptenodytes forsteri (Landis 1999). Works Cited "March of the Penguins." Urbancinefile. Accessed 17 April 2008. . Antani, Jay. "March of the Penguins." Perihelion Journal. 2006. Accessed 12 April 2008. . Arendt, Paul. "March of the Penguins." BBC movies. 8 Dec 2005. Accessed 12 April 2008. . Cline, Rich. "March of the Penguins." Shadows Arthouse Films '05. Accessed 20 April 2008. . Gonsalves, Rob. "March of the Penguins." efilmcritic.com. Accessed 12 April 2008. . Greydanus, Steven D. "March of the Penguins." National Catholic Register review. 10 Feb. 2008. Accessed 7April 2008. . Keller, Louise. "March of the Penguins." Urbancinefile. Accessed 17 April 2008. . Proyect , Louis. "Penguins and grizzly bears." rec.arts.movies.reviews. First posted in www.marxmail.org on 10 Dec. 2005. Accessed 12 April 2008. . Puccio, John J. "March of the Penguins." dvdtown.com. First published 18 Nov. 2005. Accessed 18 April 2008. . Turner, Matthew. "March of the Penguins. Two out of Five stars." The ViewLondon Review. 26 Oct. 2005. Accessed 14 April 2008. . Williams, Kam. "Emperor Penguin Mating and Migration Habits Subject of Delightful Documentary." Princeton Town Topics. Accessed 10 April 2008. . Yahoo. "Meeting of male penguins." (Photo 1). Accessed 12 April 2008. . Yahoo. "Mother penguins travel back to sea." (Photo 2) Accessed 12 April 2008. . Outline Thesis statement: There are differences between human beings and penguins, but there are also similarities that echo much human experiences of love and loss. Penguins, however, are just birds and so should be assessed as birds and not something that should model for human beings. I. There are similarities on rearing habits and mother instincts. A. Like human beings, penguins are warm-blooded vertebrate bipeds that reproduce sexually from male and female intercourse. B. Penguins rear their offspring to maturity as couples, very much reminiscent of domestic concerns. C. Mother penguins have instincts as in trying to steal another mother's chick in an effort to replace lost chick. D. Penguins mourn the death of a chick. II. However, there are more differences between human beings and penguins. A. Humans are created in God's image, bequeathed with rational souls and moral freedom. With the penguins, they just have their animal instincts. 1. In their urge to reproduce, penguins brave the blizzards and gale force winds over long journey and on foot of over 100 kilometers to go to their breeding ground that is to be permanently solid ice. Human beings have the comfort of their homes. B. Commitment expected of penguins toward nurturing their egg into a livable chick is of a different level expected of human beings. 1. Penguin chicks are independent within a year, whereas human children mature much more slowly. Furthermore, humans can have multiple dependent children of different ages at the same time, potentially prolonging the parental commitment still further. 2. Penguins do not care at all if their chick is being attacked by predators. However, when the attack comes from their kind, as during the instance of attempted chick-napping, they are concerned and would not allow it. These are not so for human beings. 3. Human beings are expected to honor institutions of marriage and uphold family ideals. Penguins don't bother about institutions, and generally choose new mates each year. C. Penguins also deal with hunger, rejection, loss, loneliness, and sensuality but of a different level with those of human beings. III. Anthropomorphizing the penguins in a movie does much to take out the joy in enjoying nature as it is. 1. The words used by the narrator particularly in terms of love and lose apply only to human beings. 2. Careful interpretation of these birds in terms of their emotions should take note of the level of differences. Read More