Happy Feet 2

First of all I want to say this, I really like animation films and I actually liked this more than the first Happy Feet. The characters felt more developed and they went through a more interesting journey. This film aims to tell to children not to lie and how important the friendship is. However I have been astonished when I have seen rude comments on Happy Feet 2. I think people are being too harsh on this movie. Some critics refused to look deeper because this is not their usual type of child animation film. I am actually shocked while reading some of the scathing reviews. Also, I think people are being too hypercritical because the first Happy Feet won the Oscar. I loved this movie and I found it far superior to Rango, Gnomeo & Juliet and Cars 2. The animation was amazing. In my opinion, it has the best production values and cinematography of any animated film of 2011, I have watched lately. The story is in-depth, layered, complex and much more meaningful than the first Happy Feet. Also, there are significant themes and messages about community, teamwork, bravery, overcoming obstacles and environmentalism. I laughed, cried and felt such empathy for these penguins because this movie has a lot of soul and heart.

I just watched this movie at a close preview in TIFF, Toronto. I really like it, for it brings a fresh wave with it's story, characters and overall look. A lot of animation movies nowadays share quite a similar way of storytelling, and that's where Happy Feet 2 stands out from the crowd. Characters of Matt Damon and Brad Pitt worked out really well. Graphics and effects look really awesome. George Miller commented on the amount and complexity of those effects by saying that their render farms almost crashed in the process. Also I'd like to comment on 3D part of the movie, because it does really work out here, looks beautiful with 3d glasses on - gives real depth, really amazing experience. And I can't say the same for a lot of 3D movies that are out there. I would definitely recommend this movie, for Happy Feet 2 will be interesting for both children and adults.

Happy Feet is definitely one of those films that doesn't need a sequel but it has a purpose to give us an environmental message and that message became the main plot of this film. But for some reason, it's unnecessary. Extraneous characters like the Krills. There's nothing much to do with this. Just a lot of unnecessary things scattered throughout. The visuals are largely stunning and still has its powerful tone but even with those things, it still falls short.

The first Happy Feet movie sets with a powerful tone and an absurd but interesting premise. That was acceptable as a penguin movie. Happy Feet 2 has its similarity with the first one by the father-son relationship. The rest is all about the crisis of the climate change but unnecessary things are happening especially with the two Krills, Will and Bill. They appear like Scrat from the Ice Age series. They are funny though but again, unnecessary.

The film itself is also unnecessary. The problem of Mumble's tap dancing was already solved. They lived happily ever after in Antarctica since the "aliens" moderated their fishing. The climate change is a really good idea. But after the movie, it feels like it's just another sequel. Well, the movie never fails to its cast. Elijah Wood and Robin Williams did the same thing in the first movie but still good in this sequel. The newbies, Brad Pitt and Matt Damon are both fun even though they are playing the most extraneous characters of the film. Pink and Common are good replacements. What happened to Fat Joe? And the last but never the least is Hank Azaria who nearly steals the show.

The movie gives some nostalgia and powerful tone from the first movie but it doesn't help at all but the visuals are really stunningly beautiful. Keeps the film large and worth it to the cinema and 3D. Realistic textures to make it look like it's Animal Planet but the elephant seals looks cartoony in some part but it's still good to look at. The songs are decent.

There are only two reasons why this exists. Environmental Propaganda and money. It's the 21st Century of Hollywood and they are somewhat running out of ideas. With all of their technology and talented filmmakers, they can make as many unnecessary sequels as they want. The Environmental Message is stuck in the plot but there is nothing wrong with that. Happy Feet 2 is not a bad movie. It's just unnecessary.

Interestingly enough, I enjoyed this far more than I did the original "Happy Feet." I thought this movie had a much better developed and much more interesting (and even at times exciting) story, I thought that it had characters that overall were also better developed and most impressive was that it avoided the really in your face political message that characterized the first instalment. At the same time it held on to what worked well in the original movie - the superb animation and the good use of songs.

The story once again revolves around the colony of Emperor Penguins in Antarctica, and especially around Mumble, the dancing penguin who's now married to Gloria and has a son. While Mumble and son Eric are away, the colony gets trapped by shifting ice and faces starvation if they can't find a way out. Enlisting the help of Ramon's penguin colony, which now includes a little puffin named Sven, and a herd of elephant seals, Mumble sets out to save them.

It really did work well. The only think I found a bit awkward was the parallel storyline around Will and Bill - two krill who get separated from their swarm. That seemed an unnecessary addition to the story, and although the movie tried hard, I never thought the krill story fit into the overall story very well. Other than that, though, this was really quite well done, and, since I didn't really care for the first movie, it was a pleasant surprise. (7/10)

Mumble, The Master of Tap, has a problem because his tiny son, Erik, is choreo-phobic. Reluctant to dance, Erik runs away and encounters The Mighty Sven: a penguin who can fly! Mumble has no hope of competing with this charismatic new role model. But things get worse when the world is shaken by powerful forces. Erik learns of his father's "guts and grit" as Mumble brings together the penguin nations and all manner of fabulous creatures-from tiny Krill to giant Elephant Seals, to put things right. -- (C) Warner Bros

I thought HAPPY FEET was pretty great. The film was foot-tapping fun and the dark turn it took in the third act, while unexpected, made it edgy and different for me. When a sequel was announced, I thought it seemed unnecessary. How far can you really stretch the premise of penguins who can dance and sing? Apparently, not that far. After viewing the sequel, it very much does seem unnecessary and wholly forgettable within ten minutes after you walk out of the theater, which is disappointing to say the least. Other than this, the main problem with HAPPY FEET 2 is that there aren't that many good musical numbers as compared to the first one. Most of them are pretty mediocre. However, there are probably around three that range from good to great, one of which uses the song "Under Pressure," which is easily the best number in the entire film.

Another problem I had was the dark tone of the film. It's a bit TOO dark, if you ask me. You see the younger penguin characters constantly be put in danger which made the film very uncomfortable to watch, and what these characters go through in the film would probably traumatize them for life. The film also suffers from messy storytelling. For example, the subplot with the shrimp characters (voiced by Matt Damon and Brad Pitt) seems to come from nowhere and is out of place from the rest of the film. It also doesn't help that the characters are so damn annoying. As for the 3D, it's put to good use in some places but, overall, it's really unnecessary. The one good thing I can say about the film is the look of it, which is very beautiful. I also liked Pink a lot, who gives a boost for all the musical numbers she sings in, along with Robin Williams, who has a few great jokes up his sleeves.

Overall, HAPPY FEET 2 is a disappointment considering that I am a fan of the first film. Director George Miller doesn't seem to have his heart in the right place for this sequel compared to the first film. However, the film is slightly better then CARS 2 if that says anything.