March of the Penguins (2005)

In the Antarctic, every March since the beginning of time, the quest begins to find the perfect mate and start a family.

Director:

Luc Jacquet

Writers:

Luc Jacquet (scenario), Luc Jacquet (adaptation)

Stars:

Morgan Freeman, Charles Berling, Romane Bohringer

Won 1 Oscar. Another 21 wins & 15 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Charles Berling	...	Le père (voice)
Romane Bohringer	...	La mère (voice)
Jules Sitruk	...	Le bébé (voice)
Morgan Freeman	...	Narrator (voice)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Amitabh Bachchan	...	Narrator (voice)
Jose Coronado	...	Emperor Father (voice)
Sky du Mont	...	Narrator (voice)
Gösta Ekman	...	Narrator (voice)
Fiorello	...	Narrator (voice)
Sofie Gråbøl	...	Narrator (voice)
Hikari Ishida	...	Haha-Penguin (voice)
Ryûnosuke Kamiki	...	Ko-Penguin (voice)
Adrian Killian	...	Penguin Baby (voice)
Marek Kondrat	...	Narrator (voice)
Andrea Kathrin Loewig	...	Penguin Mother (voice)

Storyline

At the end of each Antarctic summer, the emperor penguins of the South Pole journey to their traditional breeding grounds in a fascinating mating ritual that is captured in this documentary by intrepid filmmaker Luc Jacquet. The journey across frozen tundra proves to be the simplest part of the ritual, as after the egg is hatched, the female must delicately transfer it to the male and make her way back to the distant sea to nourish herself and bring back food to her newborn chick.

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Plot Keywords:

father son relationship | do or die | life cycle | moon | lonliness | 

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Taglines:

In the harshest place on Earth, love finds a way

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Genres:

Documentary | Family

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Certificate:

G

Did You Know?

Trivia

During the 2005 Houston Art Car Weekend - a 1981 Datsun 210 station wagon was created using the film's theme as a promotional/marketing tool - the art car theme was titled "Ant-CAR-tica - The March of the Penguins". This art car was used as a promotion for the film's release in the Houston, TX area. After the film's release, the art car sculpture was dismantled.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Narrator: [narrating voice over] There are few places hard to get to in this world. But there aren't any where it's harder to live.

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Crazy Credits

As the closing credits roll, footage is shown of the photographers dragging their equipment across the ice, setting up their cameras, and shooting film as the penguins walk around them.

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Alternate Versions

The original French version features dialog for the penguins and a pop music soundtrack.

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Connections

Featured in 50 Documentaries to See Before You Die: Episode 2 (2011)

User Reviews

Cute and visually spectacular

La Marche de l'Empereur (2005) is a french documentary that features the habits of penguins during the course of one year: their mating rituals, their migrations, laying of the eggs, searching for food, etc. It also shows them facing a danger or two, and (what for me was the highlight of the movie) the moment when the baby penguins break out of their shells! The movie is visually astounding. The cinematographer has managed to capture extreme close-ups where you can see the pattern of their feathers, as well as breath-taking longshots of hundreds of penguins marching on the beautiful icy backdrop. There is also a suspenseful underwater sequence.

The movie is accompanied with poetic voice-overs that tell the story from the penguins' point of view, and gentle ambiance music. There are also a few laughs here and there, as penguins bump into each other or slip on the ice.

The movie could have been handled better from a dramatic storytelling stand-point, but it seemed the director was aiming to create a sort of poetic new age nature movie, and as such, it works perfectly. Admittedly, there are points where the style starts to wear on you, and some parts seem to be repeating themselves, but at 80 minutes long the movie doesn't overstay its welcome.

All in all, the movie is a memorable experience, and manages to be informative and entertaining at the same time, and even manages to be moving on occasion. And penguins are simply the cutest animals!

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [France] Warner Brothers [United States]

Country:

France

Language:

French English

Release Date:

22 July 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

March of the Penguins

Filming Locations:

Terre Adélie, Antarctica

Box Office

Budget:

$8,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$137,492, 26 June 2005

Gross USA:

$77,437,223

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$127,392,693

Company Credits

Production Co:

National Geographic Films, Bonne Pioche, Wild Bunch

Technical Specs

Runtime:

80 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1