MOVIE REVIEW                                        PRE HOMILETICS CLASS 11/6/06

MARCH OF THE PENGUINS

Last summer I saw a movie that I found to be both awe inspiring and moving.  That afternoon my wife Nancy had talked about going to see a movie and of course I mentally rolled my eyes at the prospect of going to see what sounded like another “cute” documentary film; but I couldn’t be far enough from the truth. 

March of the Penguins, a Warner Independent Pictures and National Geographic film presented by Bonnie Pinoche, and narrated by Morgan Freeman was much more than just a “cute” documentary film.  I found this film to be a stirring commentary on the very unique and very inspiring life of very special animals with lives so amazing it stirs the imagination.

In 80 minutes, the producers, together with a terrific film crew have created a masterpiece.  What is delivered is a surprising view of God’s incredible miracle of creation and of the beauty of the gift of life itself by giving us an intimate view of the not so mundane lives of Arctic Emperor Penguins.  

One can not watch this film without “getting involved in the beauty of this true life story” and without coming to the conclusion that God gives examples and lessons to us in very surprising ways, even through nature itself, by His intricate and wondrous design.  In these highly social and animals which at first one would laugh at because of their appearance and movements, we find graphically depicted in this film a full range of emotion, values, priorities and will power which goes far beyond instinct.

The willingness of these animals to actually sacrifice their lives in valiant feats of endurance, and the way they act in total cooperation with each other in unselfish and gentle caring ways, is both astounding and frankly a clear reminder of how our values should be ordered and how we are all connected to each other in life.

In one scene, two of these beautiful animals finally find each other and mate for life, with the beauty of the film, the music, the graceful movements and the narration of Morgan Freeman painting a truly beautiful sequence of affection, a little boy in the seat behind us in the theater actually said: “Mommy, are they in love?”                                                                                                                                                                                                                        

The French film crew that lived in the Artic during the filming, endured minus 70 degree temperatures with wind chills of under 100 degrees below to capture the Emperor Penguin’s astounding feats of endurance and will.  The males protecting the eggs actually group together tightly into a solid mass by the thousands against the wind and weather, constantly rotating from the inside to the outside so that they all share the burden of the cold and also the warmth of the center. Together they make it through the storms of life. 

The males actually protect the egg until it hatches, then they feed their young from their own stomachs until they are so weak they can barely survive.  This continues until the females return with food and find their mates and only offspring again. These small reunited families actually celebrate together in what could not be called anything but joy. 

The incredible cinematography captures the majestic wonder of the starkest region on earth from which the miracle of life and life lessons are taught.

You can not watch this film without celebrating God’s wisdom, His divine plan, His awesome creation. I highly recommend this film for all ages and especially for whole families to watch together./ 

March of the Penguins, a stunning and inspiring view of God’s creation.

Andy Cirmo

Diaconal Formation class of ‘07