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March Of The Penguins (2005) Certificate U

March Of The Penguins
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Rated 3.5 stars
Average rating
(69%)
 
Starring: Morgan Freeman (Pres/Narr)
Director: Luc Jacquet
Studio: WARNER BROS
Run time: 77 mins
Genres: Documentary
Languages: English, Audio Description
Subtitles: English
Released: May 08, 2006
Also available on: Also Available on: blu_ray Also Available on: hd_dvd

French director, Luc Jacquet's March of the Penguins follows the mating rituals of the emperor penguin, one of the most resilient animals on earth. Each summer, after a nourishing period of deep-sea feeding, the penguins pop up onto the ice and begin their procession across the frozen tundra of Antarctica. Walking in single file, they are a sight to behold. Hundreds converge from every direction, moving instinctively toward their mating ground. Once there, they mingle and chatter until they find the perfect mate a monogamous match that will last a year, through the brutal winter and into the spring. During that time, the mother will birth an egg and then leave for the ocean to feed again. The father will stay to protect the egg through the freezing blizzards and pure darkness of winter, which would be deadly to practically any other species. Finally, with spring, the egg hatches and the baby penguins are born. Mothers return from the sea to reunite with their families and feed the starving newborns, while the fathers are finally relieved of their protective duties after months without food.

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Highest rated reviews

88 out of 100 people found the following review helpful:

Rated 5 stars
Spectacular!

Kay from Worcester, 22nd November, 2005

This is better than any 1/2 hour documentary that appears on tv! Its got fabulous filming and focuses on the penguin's way of life and how they exist. Its a love story in a way because it focuses on the relationship bonds between mother, father and chick and how they rely on each other. I am biased where penguins are concerned, because I think they are gorgeous creatures, but even my partner found this was an excellent well directed movie.

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56 out of 80 people found the following review helpful:

Rated 1 stars
Absolute Tosh

Richard Reed from Stamford UK, 16th May, 2006

I must admit I have never written a movie review before. Actually, this is the first review I have written about anything, movies or otherwise! However, I felt this film was so awful that a dire need to do so came over me. Whilst the story of the Emperor Penguins fight for survival is a poignant one, the Hollywood treatment it received in this offering really did not do it justice. No doubt, the producers were in two minds as to whether to go for the Disney approach or make a blockbuster documentary. In the end, they did neither. The result is an amateurish and lacklustre movie, which if there is any justice in the world should sink like a stone. If you really want to see the tale of the Emperor Penguins told with professionalism and passion, rent or buy David Attenborough's 'Life in the Freezer'. Now that really is a masterpiece.

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56 out of 95 people found the following review helpful:

Rated 1 stars
A pile of penguin poo

Hermione from , 13th May, 2006

Don’t get me wrong – I think penguins are fascinating, and their amazing life cycle deserves to be told. But to dress it up as a love story, and to make out that the birds are fine upstanding individuals who set great store on family values is, frankly, utter tosh. The photography is superb, but that’s not enough to sustain the interest for 90 minutes. And the voice-over provides the killing blow: it’s deadly serious and the script is both dull and flawed. If you want a Disney-style heart-warming story about cute little penguins then this is for you: if, however, you want to learn something about the creatures, then hire the BBC’s Blue Planet series which contains stunning footage without the anthropomorphic twaddle that ruins this movie.

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22 out of 23 people found the following review helpful:

Rated 5 stars
ABSOLUTELY AWESOME!

AHMED11 from Greater Manchester, 10th May, 2006

The march of the penguin is truly a great film,more a documentary.
It is educational and informative as it certainly opens your eyes discovering the incredible life of the penguin.

It was clearly an out of this world experience/journey for those who went to antarctica and spend a year with these creatures and i wish i was one of them.

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Most recent reviews

Rated 2 stars
Been There Seen That!

Crookshanks from , 15th March, 2010

Ok I'll admit that after the first half hour of this documentry I turned it off. Not because it was awful or rubbish or even a waste of time as it was none of these. It was just because I'd seen it all before, mostly from David Attenborough/BBC docs, so every bit of information was a repeat of what I already knew about penguins. If you have not seen any of the BBC stuff then I would recommend this film to you as the footage is beautiful and truely remarkable.

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Rated 2 stars
March of the Penguins

A Customer from London,England, 24th February, 2010

Poor immitation of David Attenborough's version

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Rated 5 stars
March Of The Penguins

Bennathon from , 14th February, 2010

Well, the film is fantastic and provides a real insight into reality for another type of animal other than humans which is great. While the documentary is epic and very interesting, there are moments of pure heart wrenching agony, very very sad moments, but sadly this is the wild and it just shows what its like in reality for these penguins, but still brilliant film, and shows us humans are stupid and weak compared to those penguins, which is true all along..

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Rated 5 stars
Wow!!!

A Customer from Swansea, 23rd January, 2010

My husband and I had heard a lot about this film and how good it was supposed to be. We finally decided to rent it to see for ourselves what all the hype was about. We were both mesmerised and couldn't take our eyes off the film - not even for a cup of tea! It certainly is an eye opener into the life of a penguin and I for one definitely don't want to come back as a penguin. The film contains so many different elements - humour, love, saddness - to name just a few. If you like animal documentaries then this film will certainly appeal to you.

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