…somebody to… LUUUURRRVVVVE.

One of my many favourite Queen songs has made its way to the big screen thanks to the animated film Happy Feet, which is an excellently animated flick that unfortunately suffers from poor pacing and cheap laughs.

The 1976 hit tune is sung by talented penguin diva Gloria (voiced by Brittany Murphy) as her “heart song”, part of an elaborate mating ritual among Emperor penguins. Any penguin that can successfully complement her “heart song” with one of their own will become her mate. Her childhood friend Mumble (voiced by Elijah Wood) is one such suitor, but unfortunately has no singing ability to speak of. What he does have, instead, is a gift for dancing that is unfortunately frowned upon by the Elders (a group of senior Emperor penguins). Mumble and his dancing are blamed for the famine that has befallen the penguins and is exiled. Undaunted, Mumble realises that he has to rescue his people and get to the bottom of the famine, accompanied by his newfound friends, a quintet of adelie penguins led by the irrepressable Ramon (voiced by Robin Williams).

As I mentioned earlier, the animation in this movie is top-notch, its rich visual effects complemented by a wonderful score by John Powell and a brilliant supporting cast. Hugo Weaving, Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman are called in to perform their patriotic duty by the films Australian producers Village Roadshow and simply own their roles as Noah the Elder, Memphis and Norma Jean respectively. I think it says something when the land of Oz is able to call on its own homegrown A-listers for their movies to match their US counterparts to make a truly star-studded cast.

My discovery of Brittany Murphy was a pleasant surprise. I had originally pigeon-holed the actress as the stereotypical airheaded blonde based on the roles that she’s played in films like Clueless, Uptown Girls, Sin City and Just Married - not to mention that she used to date co-star Ashton Kutcher (the less said the better). But her voice acting in this film is nothing short of brilliant. It turns out that she’s quite the singer too, with a voice so soulful I almost thought it was a younger version of the late, great Ella Fitzgerald. As I said earlier, she also covered one of my favourite Queen songs, and is the reason I’m probably going to buy the soundtrack.

Unfortunately, all this couldn’t help lift the film from its plot mediocrity - the pacing is so bad that its environmental themes seem frivolous as a result of the children’s show treatment. You know, believing one shouldn’t harp too long on a theme due to their shorter attention span, but instead reiterate the theme ad nauseum - essentially replacing quality with quantity.

The other thing I didn’t quite like was its slightly more subtle attack on organised religion, or at least an anti-clerical message. The Elders are portrayed as overbearing, opposed to change and condemning of those who would be different, by choice or otherwise. Their seeming authority is due to their rather illogical faith in a mythological creature known as the “Great Guin” who is subsequently dismantled by the actions of Mumble Happy Feet. Maybe it’s just me being a little too sensitive about even the subtlest reference to the Catholic Church, but I thought it was unneccessary to create a ‘religious elite’ to further complicate the story of the outcast who eventually returns as the saviour of the community who rejected him.

When it comes down to the crunch, Happy Feet is an enjoyable film, but hardly ranks among the top English-language animated films of all time. I give it 3.5 out of 5 Hammers.