Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Carlos Alazraqui | ... | Nestor (voice) | |
Lombardo Boyar | ... | Raul (voice) | |
Jeffrey Garcia | ... | Rinaldo (voice) (as Jeff Garcia) | |
Johnny A. Sanchez | ... | Lombardo (voice) (as Johnny Sanchez III) | |
Robin Williams | ... | Ramon / Lovelace (voice) | |
Elijah Wood | ... | Mumble (voice) | |
Brittany Murphy | ... | Gloria (voice) | |
Hugh Jackman | ... | Memphis (voice) | |
Nicole Kidman | ... | Norma Jean (voice) | |
Hugo Weaving | ... | Noah the Elder (voice) | |
Elizabeth Daily | ... | Baby Mumble (voice) (as E.G. Daily) | |
Magda Szubanski | ... | Miss Viola (voice) | |
Miriam Margolyes | ... | Mrs. Astrakhan (voice) | |
Fat Joe | ... | Seymour (voice) | |
Alyssa Shafer | ... | Baby Gloria (voice) |
This is the story of a little penguin named Mumble who has a terrible singing voice and later discovers he has no Heartsong. However, Mumble has an astute talent for something that none of the penguins had ever seen before: tap dancing. Though Mumble's mom, Norma Jean, thinks this little habit is cute, his dad, Memphis, says it "just ain't penguin." Besides, they both know that, without a Heartsong, Mumble may never find true love. As fate would have it, his one friend, Gloria, happens to be the best singer around. Mumble and Gloria have a connection from the moment they hatch, but she struggles with his strange "hippity- hoppity" ways. Mumble is just too different--especially for Noah the Elder, the stern leader of Emperor Land, who ultimately casts him out of the community. Away from home for the first time, Mumble meets a posse of decidedly un-Emperor-like penguins--the Adelie Amigos. Led by Ramon, the Adelies instantly embrace Mumble's cool dance moves and invite him to party with... Written by Anthony Pereyra <hypersonic91@yahoo.com>
Rarely do I enjoy animated films these days: I find the animation (mostly computer generated) to be colorful but banal, and the action angles are selected by the programmer's eye, not the way a natural observer would have seen the shot (like we saw in classic cell animation of years past). "Happy Feet" is different. The combination of rotoscoping (now advanced motion capture), intense attention to detail and organic POV make this film extraordinarily enjoyable to watch. The sound quality was top-notch, and the music loads of fun for anyone with a pulse. The character voices from Robin Williams, Elijah Wood, Hugh Jackman, and others was perfectly matched to their characterizations. Savion Glover's performance as Mumble's ecstatic feet was not only good as a an animated fanciful Emperor Penguin, but also valid as a fine, skilled tap dancer; one of the finest. The continuity was good, impressive editing, and the message clear: celebrate our differences, adapt to change when necessary, and don't be afraid to take on challenges, even when they seems insurmountable. That's a great message for anyone at any age.