Happy Feet 2

Happy Feet Two has all the allegorical animation requirements in one amusing story about a little penguin's growth to self-knowledge and courage, a family that fights for each other, and an entire village of empire penguins determined to survive in the face of a daunting environmental catastrophe.

And don't forget the dancing penguin routines, now a part of our cultural memory because who would have ever thought such a conceit would work? In the case of this film, the dancing is central to the survival of the colony, all of which is just metaphor for having imagination and invincible spirit to overcome the odds.

The chances for Happy Feet Two being sappy and repetitive were significant, but its ebullient spirit, gifted voices like Robin Williams,' and a creative plot make the penguins an unlikely symbol of intrepid imagination. Anyway, when I hid in a trench in New Zealand to see the little lovelies trundle home as they always do at the same time each day, I was hooked to see an animation renewing our cultural romance with penguins and the beast fable itself.

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 was really looking forward to seeing this film and it did not disappoint. Although Happy Feet Two was not as good as its Oscar-winning predecessor, there were still plenty of toe-tapping moments. I liked the fact that the songs were recognizable. I am sure that L. L. Cool J is just tickled pink that they included his "Mama Said Knock You Out". In this film Mumble (Elijah Wood) is all grown up and learning how to be a better father to his son Erik (Ava Acres). Erik was just the cutest little thing and he pulls at your heart-strings right from the beginning. The main story line was a good one, but I think that I found the story between Bill the Krill (Matt Damon) and Will the Krill (Brad Pitt) even more entertaining. Those two had their own thing happening. I liked the way that the writer (George Miller) had two stories going on at the same time and the fact that they blended together in the end was excellent. I think that you have to have a lot going on to keep the attention of kids these days. I did not see this film in 3D, but you could tell by some of the scenes that the price of a 3D ticket might have been worth it for this film. The animation in this film was simply stunning. Animation has come a long way since Casper the Friendly ghost (I'm dating myself, huh?) Anyway, it was great. It was also refreshing to see the development of numerous female characters in this film such as Gloria (Pink) and Carmen (Sofia Vergara). I have to give props to the ladies. Robin William's character, Ramon had me cracking up throughout the film. It is not surprising that Robin really knows how to make his characters stand out since he has done numerous voice projects in the past (Genie in the Aladdin films, Dr. Know in A.I. and Fender in Robots). This film contains numerous life-lessons that I think that the target audience will understand (one person can make a difference, keep your promises, don't run away from home, etc.). If you enjoyed the first Happy Feet, then you will also enjoy this one (just not as much). Anyway, I say put on your dancing shoes, shake a tail feather and go out and see this film. I am giving this film a green light.

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.

I love this movie. It's about Mumble (Elijah Wood) and Gloria's (Pink) baby penguin named Erik (Ava Acres) who wanders off from all the other penguins. His father, Mumble tries to find him and while he is gone a big iceberg blocks the penguins from going anywhere. Anthony's video review here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_2LiIaHRbY

My favorite characters are Mumble, Erik and two krill named Will and Bill (Brad Pitt & Matt Damon). I like Mumble because he is really funny and he sometimes gets mad at Erik. I like Erik because he tries to get his father to take more chances and he is almost always happy. I like the two krill because they show how friendships take work. They split up in the movie, get lost and then find each other again and make a stronger friendship.

My favorite part of this movie is when Will and Bill start tapping on the ice from underneath - kind of like how Mumble taps on the ice from above. Then, a whole bunch of other krill join in and they light up the ice with all of their tapping. I think this is really cool because it is neat to see all the lights and how they actually do that.

The animation and special effects in this movie are really cool. When the krill light up the sea, that is really cool. When some of the ice goes tumbling down the effects of that are really neat. The animation in this movie is awesome. The penguins look very real and they do a good job at making them talk.

I recommend this movie for ages two and up. This movie does have a few scary parts that might be frightening for kids younger than two. For example, when one of the elephant seals falls into a big hole his kids get really scared because they think he might get stuck down there forever. That part made me a little nervous. This is a great family movie that shows happiness and friendship. Go out and see this movie when it comes out in theaters on November 18th.

Reviewed by Anthony Aranda, age 9, KIDS FIRST! Film Critic