Synopsis

In the great nation of Emperor Penguins, deep in Antarctica, you're nobody unless you can sing, which is so unfortunate for young Mumble, who is the worst singer in the world. He is born dancing to his own tune. He can't sing but he sure can tap dance. While his mum may think his little habit is cute, his dad, Memphis believes "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 unEmperor like penguins the Adelie Amigos. Led by Ramon, the Adelies instantly embrace Mumble's cool dance moves and invite him to party with them. In Adelie Land, Mumble seeks the counsel of Lovelace the Guru, a crazy-feathered Rockhopper penguin who will answer any of life's questions for the price of a pebble. Together with Lovelace and the Amigos, Mumble sets out across vast landscapes and, after some epic encounters and a remarkable journey, Mumble proves that by being true to yourself, you can make all the difference in the world.

What The Critics Say

"Music is fantabulous, acting solid, animation dynamic; from cute to powerful in 0.5 seconds. This is what going to the movies is all about; and I don't even have kids!" Full ReviewComments Ross Anthony HOLLYWOOD REPORT CARD "Happy Feet is one of the most visually ravishing CGI films yet rendered." Ty Burr BOSTON GLOBE "Another triumphant, playful, and deeply spiritual animation classic by the Australian genius behind Babe; this one will set your feet in motion and stir your soul. Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat SPIRITUALITY AND PRACTICE "In a year rich with animation options, Happy Feet stands head and shoulders above its competition." Peter Debruge MIAMI HERALD "All in all, Happy Feet is a happy feat." Jack Garner ROCHESTER DEMOCRAT AND CHRONICLE "A toe-tapping 'happy feat' of remarkable animated movie-making." Pete Hammond MAXIM "The dancing penguins flip in with fun, putting a smile on your face and a song in your heart." Susan Granger SUSANGRANGER.COM

"George Miller's Happy Feet may be the 10th animated film this year with talking critters -- but, trust me, you're probably going to want to see the best feature-length cartoon since The Incredibles, no matter what your age." Lou Lumenick NEW YORK POST "If you fell in love with the wingless heroes of last year's documentary hit March of the Penguins, prepare to surrender completely to George Miller's computer-animated musical/adventure Happy Feet." Jack Mathews NEW YORK DAILY NEWS "Easily the best animated film of the year." Christy Lemire ASSOCIATED PRESS "It's so much fun! It's so sweet, this film. It's so cute. I mean, I love the fact that Australian writers have created these very nice little characters. 4 1/2 STARS." Margaret Pomeranz ABC AT THE MOVIES "Happy Feet offers dazzling cinematic family fun, and a mad medley of tunes (songs made famous by the Beatles, the Beach Boys, Earth, Wind & Fire, Queen, and Stevie Wonder, among others)." Steven Rea PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER "It's official. The cutest thing on the planet is penguins singing Boogie Wonderland." Nell Minow MOVIE MOM AT YAHOO! MOVIES

The Inside Story Mention the name George Miller when talking about films and the first thing that springs to most peoples minds is "Mad Max". Now, while some people might find it a little hard to get their heads around the words, George Miller, "Mad Max", "Babe" and "Happy Feet" all in the one sentence, when it comes to a new project Millar has no such problem. "There’s only one thing that attracts me to any project whether it be ‘Mad Max,’ or fables about pigs or penguins. The power of the story," Miller states. "Story is king! What’s so seductive about working in film is that you can go into whatever world you like, but you’re always trying to find the most meaningful stories. So, to me, there’s not much difference between Mad Max, Babe, or, indeed, the creatures of Happy Feet." One thing very noticeable about Millers latest project is it's similarity in part to the recent penguin epic, "March of the Penguins". It's a question he has been asked on many occassions. the answer he says is that "Happy Feet" in fact "started long before "‘March of the Penguins" was released. The fact that the documentary was so successful was a double delight because it helped set up interest in our computer-animated movie about penguins." Miller admits he came to the idea of the story of an Emperor Penguin who happens to be a great tap dancer after watching a number of documentaries on the wildlife of the Antarctic. "I was always attracted to the epic nature of Antarctica. About ten years ago, when I saw "Life in The Freezer", the BBC/National Geographic documentary on penguins, it struck me that there was a great story there. Penguins live such extraordinary lives, richly allegorical in terms of how we conduct ourselves as humans. The way they survive at the far end of the planet, huddling against the cold, sharing the warmth, singing to find a mate," he explained. Singing plays an important part in "Happy Feet" just as it does in the real life. Some have explained it as the "heart-song" of the Emperor Penguin. "To us, it sounds like squawking," Miller clarifies. "But to each individual penguin, it’s like a song. There might be 25,000 birds on an Antarctic ice shelf, each having a song unique to themselves, and somehow one manages to find another through the cacophony." The biggest star in "Happy Feet" is Mumble the penguin. He can't sing but he is so happy, all he wants to do is tap, shuffle, hip-hop and slide his way across the frozen wasteleand. Mumble is superbly voiced by the star of "The Lord Of The Rings" trilogy, Elijah Wood. "Mumble is earnest and open to new things. We knew whoever voiced him would have to be able to communicate an intelligent innocence, and, at the same time, be hip and cool. We needed an actor with a real, open quality; we found the perfect match in Elijah Wood," says co-writer Judy Morris. While every other penguins heartsong is from their voice, Mumble finds his in his feet. That bears a striking resemblance to Tony Award winning dancer Savion Glover. "I can relate to Mumble a lot," declares Glover. "Because, while I’m true to my own art form, which is tap dancing, I’m not much of a singer. I've tried it; I'll continue to have a go at it, but I’m better at expressing myself through my feet, just like Mumble." The voice roles of Mumble's parents Norma Jean and Memphis are provided by Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman. "Memphis is a pretty cool penguin," says Tony Award winner Jackman who played Australia’s favorite son, Peter Allen, in Broadway’s hit show "he Boy From Oz". "And he sure does love Norma Jean. When they fall for each other, he’s the happiest he’s ever been in his life." Of her role Kidman says, "When you first meet Norma Jean, a lot of the penguin boys are interested in her. She has this wiggle and this walk and this voice. It’s cute and sexy. But she only has eyes for Memphis. Then they have a baby together, and from the moment she sees Mumble, she just loves him. She doesn’t care that his Heartsong sounds a little different; she thinks he’s perfect just the way he is, which is the way any mother feels about their child." To which Miller adds, "One of my favorite things about Norma Jean is that she’s the only one in the community who truly believes that there’s nothing wrong with Mumble. She stands up for her son." But Memphis does have a problem doesn't he? "Memphis and Norma Jean want Mumble to be happy, says Kidman, "but Memphis has a harder time with the dancing, so Norma Jean tries to help him bridge the gap." The spark in Mumble's life is provided by a swell penguin named Gloria. She is voiced by Brittany Murphy. But here's a little secret. Murphy has never sung on camera before! Miller bears witness to her ability noting, "Gloria is the greatest singer in a whole generation of penguins so naturally I needed an actress who not only had a great speaking voice, but an inspiring singing voice as well. The director recalls, "I didn’t know Brittany could sing until someone showed me a test she did. It turns out that she trained as a singer before she trained as an actor. She sang two songs in the movie and she was just superb." If you don't believe Miller believe me. Wait till you hear Murphy sing "Boogie Wonderland". And how does Murphy see her onscreen penguin character? "Gloria’s very confident, strong and sassy, with tons of heart. She’s all about good intentions and she’s never afraid to speak up. She’s someone I would want for a best friend." But in a large Emperor Penguin flock, conformity is the big thing. Having dancing feet isn't quite what flock leader, the cantankerous Noah had in mind. Noah is voiced by acclaimed Australian actor Hugo Weaving. "Hugo has a lovely voice," says director, co-writer and producer George Miller, "but I pushed him to the limit. In one scene he had to shout above a fierce blizzard and a thousand singing voices." In his travels Mumble meets the Adelie Amigos, a group of five wisecracking Latino penguins. One of those pint-sized penguins is Ramon. To give the Adelies their fast and furious repartee, Miller first went to a master: legendary comedian and Academy Award winner Robin Williams, who plays Ramon. "All I needed to know when I agreed to do the film was that George Miller was directing," declares Williams. "I mean, this is a man who has worked with talking pigs, and this movie is basically March of the Penguins meets Riverdance." With Williams signed, Miller brought onboard Latino comedians Carlos Alazraqui, Johnny Sanchez III, Jeff Garcia and Lombardo Boyar to voice Nestor, Lombardo, Rinaldo and Raul, respectively." Miller should have been warned that putting the five together would be a wild ride. "We basically let them improvise and riff off each other," says Miller. Williams recalls, "It got completely wild. We were Los Penguinos. When we get together, we throw down!" Williams in fact takes on two voice roles in "Happy Feet". He provides the voice of the eccentric Rockhopper penguin Lovelace, the Guru of Adelie Land, who also narrates the story. "Lovelace is smooth like Barry White. He dispenses wisdom. He answers all of the Adelies' questions through his contact with the mystical beings who gave him his funky necklace," notes Williams. So how did he go when it came to singing? "Robin makes no claim to be a singer, but he took it on,"observes Miller, "in Spanish no less. And, as with everything he does, he put all his heart and soul into it." So how did Miller feel after working with sucha wonderful group of talented actors and actresses. "I’ve been very lucky with this voice cast. Robin Williams, as the world knows only too well, is a force of nature. It was just a marvelous experience to work with him. What was also great to see was Robin working with the young actors like Elijah Wood and the four fine comedians who played the other Amigos: Johnny Sanchez, Jeff Garcia, Carlos Alazraqui and Lombardo Boyar." "It was such a lovely cast; we just put them together and let them go at it. I forced myself to close my eyes lest I became beguiled by those fabulous movie star faces." One big strength for "Happy Feet" is the hugely impressive soundtrack. How impressive you ask? Well, George Miller wanted to change the original lyrics to Prince's song "Kiss" to "make them more penguin". He asked for Prince’s permission, but it was initially denied. After watching an early cut of the film, not only did the musician agree to the lyric changes, he liked it so much that he wrote an original song for the film, 'The Song of the Heart' that is played over the end credits. Once thing very noticable is that Mumble can't sing. That meant cast member Elijah Wood wasn’t required to sing either. All though he does sing badly in a few scenes. Now that begs the question. Can he sing well? "The truth is I don’t know if he can! I did, at one point, ask him to sing very badly," recalls Miller, "and he did that magnificently." Magnificent in a word! Yes, that sums up "Happy Feet" appropriately. Robin Williams - A Remarkable Career Robin Williams (born Robin McLaurin Williams on the 21st of July 1951 in Chicago, Illinois, USA) studied at New York's famed Julliard under John Houseman. Williams is one of a number of noteables who attended the institution (known simply as Julliard0 including: Christopher Reeve, Kevin Kline, Kevin Spacey, Tim Blake Nelson and Val Kilmer. It was while at Julliard, that Williams formed a life long friendship with the late star of "Somewhere In Time" and "Superman", Christopher Reeve. It was Houseman who told Williams he was wasting his talent and that he should strike out on his own and do stand-up comedy. That advice was the catalyst for a career that has provided great joy to cinemagoers for many years. won an Academy Award for his performance in Gus Van Sant’s "Good Will Hunting". He had previous Oscar nominations for his work in "The Fisher King", "Dead Poets Society" and "Good Morning Vietnam". In 1990, Williams shared the National Board of Review Best Actor Award with Robert De Niro for "Awakenings". In 2004, he received the prestigious Career Achievement Award from the Chicago International Film Festival. In 2005, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association honored him with the Cecil B. DeMille Award for outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment. This year, Williams has already appeared in Barry Levinson’s political satire "Man of the Year", the hit comedy "RV" for director Barry Sonnenfeld, and Patrick Stettner’s dark thriller "The Night Listener", opposite Toni Collette. This December, Williams will appear as Theodore Roosevelt in the holiday comedy "Night at the Museum". He will also star in Kirsten Sheridan’s "August Rush", with Freddie Highmore, Jonathan Rhys Meyers and Terrence Howard, and the comedy "License to Wed", with Mandy Moore and John Krasinski, both set for release in 2007. Williams first captured the attention of the world as Mork from Ork on the popular television series "Mork & Mindy". He trained at New York’s Julliard School and made his cinematic debut as the title character in Robert Altman’s "Popeye". He followed up with starring roles in Paul Mazursky’s "Moscow on the Hudson" and "The World According to Garp", George Roy Hill’s adaptation of John Irving’s acclaimed bestselling novel. His filmography also includes such hit films as Chris Columbus’ "Mrs. Doubtfire", Mike Nichols' "The Birdcage", Tom Shadyac’s "Patch Adams", Steven Spielberg’s "Hook" and Joe Johnston’s "Jumanji". Williams lent his voice talents in creating the memorable character of the Genie in the animated blockbuster adventure "Aladdin" and, more recently, voiced the character of Fendor in the 2005 animated feature "Robots". Additionally, he was the voice of Dr Know in Steven Spielberg’s "Artificial Intelligence: AI". Much to the delight of many moviegoers, Williams made a departure from being constantly cast as the funny guy to appear in three very dark, confronting roles. Wliiams played three 'bad guys': Walter Finch in "Insomnia"; Sy Parrish in "One Hour Photo" and Alan W Hakmanin in "The Final Cut". Williams began his career as a stand-up comedian and is well known for his free-associative monologues. In 2002, after a 20-year absence from the stand-up scene, he hit the road with a sold-out twenty six date U.S. tour. With its last stop on Broadway, the one-man show was filmed as "Robin Williams: Live on Broadway" and garnered five Emmy Award nominations. Offstage, Williams takes great joy in supporting philanthropic efforts around the world, benefiting health, education and the environment. This year he presented "Comic Relief 2006" with Billy Crystal and Whoopi Goldberg, a live concert to benefit families affected by Hurricane Katrina. To date, the Comic Relief organization has raised over $50 million. The Verdict "Yes, you can believe all the hype about "Happy Feet", the Kennedy Miller Production which has Oscar written all over it. This truly is the crispest, most life like animation you have ever seen. The voice cast, headed by Elijah Wood as 'Bubble' and Robin Williams as both Ramón and Lovelace is superb. The soundtrack features timeless classics performed by K.D.Lang, Brittany Murphy, Nicole Kidman, Pink and more. If you were fortunate enough to take in "March Of The Penguins" you'll relish the opportunity to see this animated singing version. It's adorable and suitable for all ages. Toe tappin' fun exceptionally well done. 4 1/2 STARS." Cast & Crew Bytes "HAPPY FEET" stars the voices of.......
Academy Award & Grammy Award winner Robin Williams ["Bicentennial Man", "Insomnia", "One Hour Photo", "Robots", "RV" and "Night at the Museum"]; Academy Award winner Nicole Kidman ["The Hours", "The Stepford Wives", "Birth" and "The Interpreter"]; Tony Award winner Hugh Jackman ["Kate & Leopold"Van Helsing", "X-Men I, II & III" and "The Presige"]; Three time AFI Award winner Hugo Weaving ["Babe: Pig in the City", "The Matrix I, II & III", "Peaches" and "Little Fish"], Brittany Murphy ["Sidewalks Of New York", "Spun", "Good Boy!" and "Sin City"] and Elijah Wood ["Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over", "The Lord of The Rings I, II & III", "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" and "Sin City"] as Mumble.
"HAPPY FEET" was .......
directed by three time Academy Award nominee George Miller ["Violence in the Cinema, Part 1", "Mad Max I, II & III", "Lorenzo's Oil" and "Babe: Pig in the City"]; edited by Christian Gazal ["Ned" and "The Scree"]; art direction by David Nelson [Visual Effects on "Hotel Sorrento", "He Died with a Felafel in His Hand", "Crackerjack" and "Danny Deckchair"]; production design by Mark Sexton ["Happy Feet"]; original music by John Powell ["The Bourne Supremacy", "Ice Age: The Meltdown", "United 93" and "X-Men: The Last Stand"] produced by Bill Miller ["Mad Max", "Something Wild", "Babe" and "Babe: Pig in the City"], Doug Mitchell ["The Year My Voice Broke", "Flirting", "Lorenzo's Oil" and "Babe"] and George Miller ["Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome", "Dead Calm", "Lorenzo's Oil" and "Babe"]. Run Time 108 minutes Rated G [AUST] Copyright ©2006 - Warner Bros - All Rights Reserved Copyright Protected © 2006 - The Movie Pages & Impact Internet Services - All Rights Reserved