March of the Penguins

2005 Documentary

While many people think of penguins as comical birds who look like they've been decked out in tuxedos, the truth is they're among the strongest and most resilient creatures in the animal kingdom. And they have to be -- each year, the emperor penguins of Antarctica travel through the most punishing environment on Earth to their nesting grounds, and after the females lay their eggs, the males keep them warm while their mates walk 70 miles back to the sea to fatten themselves with fish for themselves and their young. Filmmaker Luc Jacquet spent over a year braving the frigid temperatures of the South Pole to film this annual ritual of the penguins, and March of the Penguins documents their brave struggle to survive, as well as the close emotional bonds between the penguin families. March of the Penguins was first screened in France as La Marche de l'Empereur, with a handful of French actors providing a voice-over in which they expressed the "thoughts" of the penguins; for the American edition, Morgan Freeman was brought in to deliver a more straightforward narration. more..

Director: Luc Jacquet

Reviews

  • An astonishing documentary.

    - The San Francisco Chronicle

    19 January 2013

  • As uplifting as anything you will find in theaters.

    Kevin Crust - Los Angeles Times

    19 January 2013

  • It's poignant to watch the chicks in their youth, fed by their parents, playing with their chums, the sun climbing higher every day, little suspecting what they're in for.

    Roger Ebert - The Chicago Sun-Times

    19 January 2013

  • A cinematic experience that is dazzlingly different from anything currently in theaters, March of the Penguins captivates with its straightforward but powerful story of dogged determination, survival against harsh odds and sacrifice.

    Claudia Puig - USA Today

    19 January 2013

  • Luc Jacquet's exquisitely shot eye-of-God study of a year in the lives of these distinctive birds is a nature film built with a feel for the epic and a love of operatic narrative.

    Lisa Schwarzbaum - Entertainment Weekly

    19 January 2013

Awards

  • Best Documentary, Features

    Academy Awards (2006)

  • Best Edited Documentary Film

    American Cinema Editors (2006)

  • Best Cinematography

    BAFTA Awards (2006)

     
  • Alex Wurman

    BMI Film & TV Awards (2006)

  • Best Documentary

    Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards (2006)