Opération Pingouins

Destined to become an Australian Classic, 'Oddball' is a very enjoyable family friendly flick which says much about the local film industry and audiences. When a good yarn is well produced and marketed, people will go out and see Australian movies. Whilst not perfect, 'Oddball' is a genre pic - the kids movie that the whole family can watch; with cute animals, a wide eyed and intelligent child, a quirky and memorable leading man and a good versus evil motif. What's not to love? For me, the drawbacks were the casting/writing of an American in a major role. Surely this was not for funding reasons! The actor cast is not even a big name. It could have been written for a corporate Australian type; and there are dozens of great local actors to cast here, even if Alan Tudyk is a competent performer for both the comedic and dramatic moments. He has zero chemistry with the current superstar of Aussie cinema the omnipotent Sarah Snook. This actress is the next Cate Blanchett. World domination awaits her. With already a number of lead and supporting roles under her belt, Sarah has shown why she is the next big thing. This seems an odd choice, pardon the pun, with her career trajectory,but as it will turn out to be one of the biggest box office hits this year, perhaps there was strategy from her and her agents to take this role. The child actor playing her daughter is great, and Shane Jacobson once again ('Kenny') creates an unforgettable screen character. He shows a great ability to straddle both humour and gravitas, often from moment to moment. He is becoming a national treasure. Deb Mailman gets to do very little, but doubles up with narration; and Richard Davies ('Offspring') shows why he deserves more screen time and more work. The hilarious Frank Woodley goes somewhat against type and is terrific. But the obvious stars of the movie are the animals. They are just delightful, although it was not seamless when dog and penguin were spliced into one frame - not quite, for these eyes, anyway. With a movie like 'Oddball' its ending was always going to play out as it did, but there was a lot of fun and tension getting there. It has a very sweet heart to it this film, and I recommend it on that basis.

This is a true story, I presume embellished in places to make it a more interesting movie. All the actors are good and I was especially impressed with the cinematography.

There is a small island just offshore and only protected by a shallow patch of water. It was the home of hundreds of very small penguins. But then foxes discovered they could cross and soon the penguin population dwindled until it was down to under 20.

There are a few subplots going on but the main one is this curious dog named Oddball takes a liking to penguins and ultimately is utilized to scare off the foxes and help reestablish a healthy penguin population.

My wife and I watched it on Amazon streaming movies, it is a very nice and entertaining movie.

I was excited about this film ever since learning it was in production. Being a Shane Jacobson fan and already knowing about this incredible story, I was curious to see how it would translate onto the big screen.

Shane Jacobson brings a few laughs while playing his most "Aussie" character since Kenny. It's his family dramas and associated story line which at times bog the story down. Perhaps the film chose to focus on that aspect in an effort to draw attention away from just how fake the Middle Island penguin scenes were. In what is such a beautifully natural setting, I felt like I was watching a cheap TV-movie set.

Alan Tudyk's character of Bradley was incredibly irritating and unlikable - the casting of such an Americanised character in a quintessentially Australian tale may grate some viewers. Meanwhile, comedic legend, Frank Woodley, plays a character resembling a poor rendition of 101 Dalmations', Cruella De Vil - annoyingly "comical" for adults, kids might still get some laughs.

While not remarkable, it is an easy-to-watch family movie whose story steadily plods along to a predictable conclusion. I can't help but feel this movie could've been something really special, but instead becomes another reflection of the inconsistency currently plaguing Australia's film industry.

This movie is heart warming, funny, thoughtful, and educational. This is how the movies were when I was growing up. They are informative about endangered species or situations, but entertaining at the same time. Based on a true story, I think they did a wonderful job. The storyline was great, most of the acting was perfect, and had a thoughtful message about several different things running through the movie. Very much advise anyone to watch this. You won't be disappointed.

The great thing is that it is based on a true story. I have never heard about this before since I live far away from Australia, but there was indeed a chicken farmer who trained his dog to protect penguins from foxes and let the colony flourish.

The movie adds more fictional elements to make it an adventure story. It would be mainly interesting for kids but adults can watch it with them without a problem and enjoy it.

The acting is good. No real overacting as often happens in the genre of family movies. Shane Jacobson is great as a farmer and there is definitely a rising talent there when it comes to the child actress Coco Jack Gillies.

And in addition to humans we also get the pleasure to watch the adorable penguins and the dog in it that add a lot of fun to the movie. And of course it is filmed in the beautiful setting of Australia.

If you have kids I would recommend it. Kids usually love animals and it also has a great message of conservation that may inspire them for the future.