The Pebble and the Penguin (1995)

User Rating:

5.0/10   

Directors:

Don Bluth
Gary Goldman

Writers:

Rachel Koretsky (screenplay) &
Steven Whitestone (screenplay)

Release Date:

11 April 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Family | Animation

Tagline:

The adventure of a lifetime begins with one small pebble.

Plot:

A lovable but introverted penguin named Hubie plans to present his betrothal pebble to the bird of his dreams.

Plot Keywords:

Pebble | Penguin | Antarctica | Underwater | Boat

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Shani Wallis	...	Narrator (voice)
S. Scott Bullock	...	Chubby / Gentoo (voice)
Martin Short	...	Hubie (voice)
Annie Golden	...	Marina (voice)
Stevie Vallance	...	Priscilla / Chinstrap (voice) (as Louise Vallance)
Pat Musick	...	Pola / Chinstrup (voice)
Angeline Ball	...	Gwynne / Chinstrap (voice)
Kendall Cunningham	...	Timmy (voice)
Alissa King	...	Petra (voice)
Michael Nunes	...	Beany (voice)
Tim Curry	...	Drake (voice)
Neil Ross	...	Scrawny (voice)
Philip L. Clarke	...	King (voice)
B.J. Ward	...	Megellenic (voice)
Hamilton Camp	...	Megellenic (voice)

Also Known As:

A Penguin Story (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

74 min

Country:

Ireland | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS-Stereo | DTS

Certification:

Singapore:PG | Netherlands:AL | Portugal:M/4 | Canada:G (Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Québec) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Finland:S | UK:U | USA:G (certificate #33614)

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Quotes:

[after Hubie's failure to beat Drake]
Beany: [to Hubie] Go knock his block off!

Soundtrack:

Now and Forever (End Credit Version)

So lovely!

Genre: Penguins, animation.

Main characters: Hubie, Marina, Rocko and Drake the penguins. I feel for most of these characters and I like them very much indeed. I also like Drake, the baddie – but I do not feel for him.

Actors: Martin Short (Hubie), Shani Wallis (Narrator), Annie Golden (Marina), James Belushi (Rocko) and Tim Curry (Drake).

What happens: All of the Adelie penguins on a big iceberg are ready to mate, finding their pebbles to give to the penguin they love so they can mate. There is one rather clumsy and dreamy penguin called Hubie, who is in love with one particular penguin – but someone else loves her as well…

Message: It's not the gifts that you give your love that matter, but the giver.

My thoughts: I like this film rather a lot. I like the actors, the animation, the characters, the songs and the adventure of the story. The jokes are also amusing and I wouldn't be surprised if at least one person who didn't like this film liked at least one joke from it. The actors are well-picked and many people may like this film JUST because of them – as there are many famous ones (including James Belushi and Tim Curry). The animation is good, I especially like the backgrounds – sometimes it seems like you are going across the sea with the penguins! The characters are very lovable and have distinct personalities, not subtle though, which is one slight problem with this film. I especially like the characters of Hubie and Rocko, some may think otherwise. I also really like the songs, there is an amusing one, there are two romance ones and there is one "bad guy song" that we all have to have in a children's film! Well, we don't have to, but "Don't Make Me Laugh" is fun anyway, good singing from Tim Curry. The adventure of the film is very engaging and it keeps you focused on the film.

One thing I am not so keen about this film is that it's pretty average. Average acting – and the plot is quite average. Otherwise – I think this is a very good animated family film!

Recommended to: Families who would like to sit down to a cartoon film (maybe over some Haribo or a box of Popcorn), children who like penguins and cartoon and grown-ups who like penguins and cartoon films. Enjoy! :-)