{"id":485,"date":"2006-11-17T08:41:21","date_gmt":"2006-11-17T13:41:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/2006\/11\/17\/happy-feet\/"},"modified":"2022-09-21T05:56:43","modified_gmt":"2022-09-21T09:56:43","slug":"happy-feet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/happy-feet\/","title":{"rendered":"Is George Miller’s Happy Feet about bootyshaking or overfishing?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Happy Feet<\/em> is a tough one to try to reduce to a single stars-out-of-five rating. It possesses two extreme split personalities, its lack of integration calling into question its integrity. Was there a struggle behind the scenes between a studio wanting another cookie-cutter cartoon animal kid flick vs. a filmmaker envisioning something of substance?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first film totally embodies the worst cliches of the contemporary CGI animated film: dancing, singing animals talking the kind of stereotypical enthnic jive that would be condemned as racism in a live-action film. People laugh at Robin Williams’ “let me ‘splain something to joo” Mexican schtick in Happy Feet<\/em>, but feel queasy about Ahmed Best’s gay rastafarian routine as Jar-Jar Binks in Star Wars Episode I<\/em>. The cuteness of seeing anthropomorphized penguins shimmying to contemporary pop hits wears off fast<\/em>, yet takes up at least half the film, sorely testing the patience of any adults forced to be in the audience (in my case, it was a free work junket).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The second film is more in keeping with director George Miller’s track record with Babe: Pig in the City<\/em>. A surprisingly dark and edgy film, the sequel to Babe<\/em> was a stealth “real movie” that appealed to adults as much as kids, having more in common with City of Lost Children<\/em> and Brazil<\/em> than Charlotte’s Web<\/em>. After seemingly endless, I say endless<\/em>, musical routines, Happy Feet<\/em> slowly begins to reveal its true nature as an ecological parable. Don’t get me wrong; I’m all for turning kids into ecowarriors, but many childrens’ films have managed to blend life lessons more fully into the narrative; Toy Story II<\/em> is about engaging with life, love and friends now<\/em> as opposed to worrying about the future or pining for the past; Iron Giant<\/em> is about breaking the cycle of violence; Happy Feet<\/em> is about… either bootyshaking or overfishing. I’m not sure, and neither is the film itself.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Happy Feet is a tough one to try to reduce to a single stars-out-of-five rating. It possesses two extreme split personalities, its lack of integration calling into question its integrity. Was there a struggle behind the scenes between a studio wanting another cookie-cutter cartoon animal kid flick vs. a filmmaker envisioning something of substance? The […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4981,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22,2],"tags":[32,28,1257],"class_list":["post-485","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2-stars","category-movies","tag-animation","tag-antarctica","tag-george-miller"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2006\/11\/happy-feet-feature.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pa9lhB-7P","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":5671,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/1917-is-not-the-first-single-take-movie-but-its-one-of-the-best\/","url_meta":{"origin":485,"position":0},"title":"1917 is not the first single-take movie, but it’s one of the best","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"January 11, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Every review or casual comment about 1917, from pan to praise, will all begin with the same undeniable fact: it's an astounding technical achievement. While far from the first apparent single-take feature-length film, it's certainly one of the most seamless. Better, the feat is partially insulated from charges of gimmickry\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "3 Stars"","block_context":{"text":"3 Stars","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/ratings\/3-stars\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"1917","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/1917.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/1917.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/1917.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/1917.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/1917.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":716,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/michael-clayton\/","url_meta":{"origin":485,"position":1},"title":"Michael Clayton confronts Shiva the God of Death","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"March 22, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Michael Clayton is a that rare thing: an intelligent, fictional thriller for grownups. Like any self-respecting Thriller for Grownups, it's relentlessly grim in tone, the chronology is fractured, and a high level of detail demands your attention. It doesn't approach impenetrability like Syriana, but it unfortunately doesn't engage the brain\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "4 Stars"","block_context":{"text":"4 Stars","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/ratings\/4-stars\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Michael Clayton","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/03\/michael-clayton-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/03\/michael-clayton-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/03\/michael-clayton-feature.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/03\/michael-clayton-feature.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/03\/michael-clayton-feature.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1628,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/the-george-a-romero-zombie-cycle-part-5-diary-of-the-dead\/","url_meta":{"origin":485,"position":2},"title":"The George A. Romero Zombie Cycle Part 5: Diary of the Dead","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"February 20, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"This is not an opinion you're likely to find anywhere else on the internet, but we are prepared to argue that Diary of the Dead is one of the best of the entire George A. Romero zombie cycle. It sports the best special effects, is the least repetitive or trigger-happy,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2 Stars"","block_context":{"text":"2 Stars","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/ratings\/2-stars\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Diary of the Dead","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/diary-of-the-dead-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/diary-of-the-dead-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/diary-of-the-dead-feature.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/diary-of-the-dead-feature.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/diary-of-the-dead-feature.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":797,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/helvetica\/","url_meta":{"origin":485,"position":3},"title":"Purity, Ubiquity & Legibility: Gary Hustwit’s Helvetica","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"May 10, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Helvetica (the documentary film) is not about Helvetica (the typeface), per se. Rather, it's about the arts of graphic design and typography, their practitioners, and how they affect our daily lives. Each luminary talking head has a different explanation of Helvetica's appeal and longevity: neutrality, legibility, perfection (unlike more ornate\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "4 Stars"","block_context":{"text":"4 Stars","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/ratings\/4-stars\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Helvetica","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/helvetica-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/helvetica-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/helvetica-feature.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/helvetica-feature.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/05\/helvetica-feature.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1623,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/the-george-a-romero-zombie-cycle-part-4-land-of-the-dead\/","url_meta":{"origin":485,"position":4},"title":"The George A. Romero Zombie Cycle Part 4: Land of the Dead","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"February 19, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"George A. Romero's sporadic zombie flicks are sometimes decades apart in production, but nevertheless form a chronological sequence telling the story of the downfall of society from every angle. Night of the Living Dead (1968) is set in the early days, with a few random civilians trapped in a farmhouse.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "1 Star"","block_context":{"text":"1 Star","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/ratings\/1-star\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Land of the Dead","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/land-of-the-dead-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/land-of-the-dead-feature.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/land-of-the-dead-feature.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/land-of-the-dead-feature.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/land-of-the-dead-feature.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1965,"url":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/avatar\/","url_meta":{"origin":485,"position":5},"title":"This’ll Ruin My Day: James Cameron Goes Down the Digital Rabbit Hole in Avatar","author":"Chad Ossman","date":"January 5, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Avatar is the perfect distillation of all of James Cameron's worst tendencies: an obsession with the marine corps (while trying to have it both ways: worshipping the hardware and lingo, but casting them as villains), embarrassingly heinous dialogue (undercutting every dramatic moment with somebody droning flat one-liners like \"oh shit\"\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2 Stars"","block_context":{"text":"2 Stars","link":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/category\/ratings\/2-stars\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Avatar","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/01\/avatar.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/01\/avatar.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/01\/avatar.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/01\/avatar.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/01\/avatar.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/485","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=485"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/485\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6096,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/485\/revisions\/6096"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4981"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=485"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=485"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chadossman.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=485"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}