Mr. Forbush and the Penguins (1971)

Directors:

Arne Sucksdorff
Alfred Viola

Writers:

Graham Billing (writer)
Anthony Shaffer (novel)

Genre:

Adventure

Plot:

Womanizing biologist studies life in colony of penguins.

Plot Keywords:

Penguin | Antarctic | Animal In Title | Based On Novel | Independent Film

Cast

John Hurt	...	Richard Forbush
Hayley Mills	...	Tara St. John Luke
Dudley Sutton	...	Starshot
Tony Britton	...	George Dewport
Thorley Walters	...	Mr. Forbush Sr.
Judy Campbell	...	Mrs. Forbush
Joss Ackland	...	The Leader
Nicholas Pennell	...	Julien
Avril Angers	...	Fanny
Cyril Luckham	...	Tringham
Sally Geeson	...	Jackie
Brian Oulton	...	Food-Store Clerk
Salmaan Peerzada	...	Ahaz Khan (as Salmaan Peer)
Hugh Moxey	...	Lord Cheddar
Norman Claridge	...	Principal

Also Known As:

Cry of the Penguins (USA)

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) | Australia:G

Filming Locations:

Antarctica

Company:

British Lion Film Corporation

Trivia:

Started shooting with different actress in the female lead.

Goofs:

Continuity: When the first penguin arrives and slides on its belly towards Forbush, there are already other penguin belly tracks in the snow.

Quotes:

Richard Forbush: [to the predatory skuas] Retribution is near my fine feathered friends. Make no mistake about that.
Richard Forbush: [as he attacks the skuas with a catapult] You've asked for it, now you'll get it! Now it's your turn! You hear me? Go on, get out! GET OUT! ALL OF YOU! Die, damn you! Die! DO YOU HEAR ME? DIE! DIE!

A little lost treasure on DVD

Alfred Viola, not everyone may know this, was a major American commercial director for several decades. If you watched television in the US for any amount of time in the last 30+ years you have assuredly seen some of his work. Keeping in mind that this film is the first feature by a commercial director, you will see the technical efficiency and streamlined storytelling of a VERY experienced filmmaker at work here. The backstory behind this production is that the studio performed some major hacking on the original Alfred Viola cut and brought in a new director to shoot a tacked-on slapstick opening, and the film suffers from this quite a bit. The first 10 minutes of the film lack style and indeed cohesion of any kind, but once we reach the glacier and John Hurt is left alone with his penguins, it is like a breath of fresh air. This is a beautiful piece of cinema history and although the DVD transfer is of extremely low quality, it is good to know that this piece has not been lost forever. A wonderful forgotten film of the 1970s.