Review: "March of the Penguins" documents a heartwarming story of Antarctic love

On an oppressively hot, muggy day in late July, my friend and I were debating whether to watch a free outdoor movie screening on the D.C. mall or pay $9 for an air-conditioned film. "March of the Penguins" turned out to be worth the money--and not just for the virtual escape to Antarctica on a day when moist heat hovered in the air waiting to smother anything that moved.

Morgan Freeman narrates an informative, intimate 85-minute glimpse into the lives of emperor penguins. Penguins, boring? "Au contraire," French director Luc Jacquet might say; he's telling a love story.

Each year, thousands of emperor penguins pop out of the ocean and trek through blizzards and sub-ridiculous temperatures for fifty or more miles to gather for breeding where the ice is thickest. And these birds don't fly: they waddle, single-file. Well, sometimes they get tired and flop over to glide on their plump, sleek stomachs...but mostly they waddle.

When they get there, it's the typical Discovery Channel mating ritual scene...with a rare element of human fidelity. Though individual penguins are virtually indistinguishable in the mass of black and white, they find that "special someone," and the mate they choose is the mate they are committed to for the entire year.

Each female lays a single egg. They lose nearly half their body weight birthing and must eat soon afterwards or will die. So, since there is no food for penguins on land, she leaves it to her hubby to keep their future offspring safe and warm while she hurries back to the sea. (It doesn't help that lowering temperatures have expanded the ice and made her trek miles longer.) Meanwhile, the dads do their best: if the egg is exposed to the polar air, Baby will freeze within seconds.

After about two months, most of the eggs hatch. The chicks are still quite vulnerable to the elements and will die if they don't eat soon. Their dads are starving, too, and will leave for the sea as soon as the moms (unless they've been eaten by seals) return with bellies full of fish--hopefully in time to cough it up for their babies. The dads and chicks learn each other's unique call so they'll be able to find each other after a couple months.

At mommy's return, the dads turn over their little charges and head for the water. As the chicks grow, their parents continue to focus their lives around their little ones, taking turns feeding and protecting them. Once the chicks are old enough (unless they've been picked off by giant petrel), they're ready to dive in the ocean and fish for themselves.

By drawing out humanoid elements in the emperor penguins' story against a backdrop made possible by stunning cinematography, Jacquet puts an intriguing, amusing, and (despite myself) heartwarming spin on what could otherwise be just another bland tale of predictable animal instincts.

"March of the Penguins" is a work of art that touches something close to home. The film was almost worth my $9; for $1.50 I expect it will bring multitudes flocking to SC 106 this weekend.

Showtimes are 8:00 p.m. on Friday and 9:00 p.m. on Saturday.