Co-writer – Director Luc Jacquet brings us March Of The Penguins, an in depth documentary on the bizarre and often tragic life of the Emperor Penguins of the South Pole. Narrated by the great Morgan Freeman, MoP teaches how these funny little flightless birds stayed behind on the icy wasteland that is the South Pole, and how they make a long, slow journey to the mating grounds, where they pick a mate, and hopefully, conceive a baby. It’s amazing that they walk all those miles to get there, and then when an egg is laid, the male holds the egg on his feet under his feathers and waits for the chick to hatch, and then waits even longer for the female to come back with food for the baby. Their lives seem almost pointless, yet it’s all beautiful in it’s simplicity.

This documentary has gotten a lot of praise, and for a little doc, it sure is getting people in the seats. But while it tells an interesting story very well, I have to say that shave a few minutes off this, and it probably could have just been an Animal Planet special. Still, I realize a lot of time and effort must have gone into filming these strange and funny little creatures, and the filmmakers had to endure the same terrible weather conditions, so my hat is off to them. We’re talking extremes of 80 degrees BELOW zero!
And by the way, I just keep saying they’re funny creatures because I think it’s adorable how they waddle around and then slide on their bellies on the ice when they get tired. Come on, that’s cute.

So, should you see this?
Well, maybe. You can probably wait for DVD, but if you have an hour and a half to kill, and you find yourself at the multiplex…go ahead and see March Of The Penguins.