'march of the penguins' (2005)

tonight i saw 'march of the penguins,' absolutely amazing. apparently penguins don't mind if cinematographers are camping out around the perimeter of their huddle and approaching the huddle to get up close and personal. the close-ups are incredible. there's also an underwater scene that was shot with a submarine cinematographer. unbelievable. this film is well-made, through and through.

narration
In the original French version of 'March of the Penguins' (2005), each of the main penguins is personified with voice-over narration. It was decided that this style would not do well in the States, so instead of the cartoon-ish voice-over style, we got a National-Geographic-style narration by Morgan Freeman.

themes
this is a pilgrimage story. ...but don't worry, it's not overly dramatized like some National Geographic documentaries. this one is well-toned and offers some thematic comments but mostly focuses on documenting the life cycle of the emperor penguin. keep in mind that one of the main crew members is a biologist, and he pretty much sticks to observing and analyzing.

the story
In the ice deserts of Antarctica, deep in the most inhospitable terrain on Earth, a truly remarkable journey takes place as it has done for millennia. Emperor penguins by the thousands abandon the deep blue security of their ocean home and clamber onto the frozen ice to begin their long journey into a region so bleak, so extreme, it supports no other wildlife at this time of year. In single file, the penguins march blinded by blizzards, buffeted by gale force winds. Guided by instinct, by the otherworldly radiance of the Southern Cross, they head unerringly for their traditional breeding ground where--after a ritual courtship of intricate dances and delicate maneuvering, accompanied by a cacophony of ecstatic song--they will pair off into monogamous couples and mate. The females remain long enough only to lay a single egg. Once this is accomplished, exhausted by weeks without nourishment, they begin their return journey across the ice-field to the fish-filled seas. The male emperors are left behind to guard and hatch the precious eggs, which they cradle at all times on top of their feet. After two long months during which the males eat nothing, the eggs begin to hatch. Once they have emerged into their ghostly white new world, the chicks can not survive for long on their fathers' limited food reserves. If their mothers are late returning from the ocean with food, the newly-hatched young will die. Once the families are reunited, the roles reverse, the mothers remaining with their new young while their mates head, exhausted and starved, for the sea, and food. While the adults fish, the chicks face the ever-present threat of attack by prowling giant petrels. As the weather grows warmer and the ice floes finally begin to crack and melt, the adults will repeat their arduous journey countless times, marching many hundreds of miles over some of the most treacherous territory on Earth, until the chicks are ready to take their first faltering dive into the deep blue waters of the Antarctic.

how they communicate
Each penguin records with great precision the "vocal signature" of his or her partner, and will be able to recognize this signature among thousands.

the shoot
One year and 120 hours of images. A whole winter-over cycle, the cycle of the emperor. Alone in Antarctica. ...A crew member says, "It took me a year to recover. Re-entry is a long process."

the executive crew
JÉRÔME MAISON, a sailor with a good deal of marine biology experience, who specialized in the high seas (Southern seas and Antarctica), and LAURENT CHALET, director of photography with years of both documentary and narrative feature experience, got on famously from the start.