If you like supporting causes that help nature, seeing this movie does just that for you! Without having to go through the trouble of finding a worthwhile cause, simply buying a ticket to ‘Penguins’ lets you see an entertaining film and make a donation to the Wildlife Conservation Network (WCN) to help protect penguins across the southern hemisphere at the same time. To do this, see ‘Penguins’ in theaters today through April 23. During that time, for every ticket sold, Disney Nature is making a donation to them to support Global Penguin Society’s work to protect these penguins. Outside of being an outstanding nature film, I can’t think of a better reason to see this than that. Take as many people with you as you can and spread the word so your friends and family can help, too. Now I’ll tell you some about the movie.

‘Penguins’ starts out by introducing us to ‘Steve’ who’s an adorable Adélie penguin. This breed is found along the entire coast of the Antarctic. When they become adults, they make a one-hundred-mile trek every year to mate with the females. Steve is an adult, albeit a somewhat naïve one, who we get to see meet and mate, purportedly, for the first time. The camera follows Steve, and Steve ‘stunt doubles,’ as producer Roy Conli told us, to keep the film moving along to complete the journey of the life of a male penguin. Before he gets to where everyone else is, he accidentally ends up in Emperor penguin territory, where he’s not at all welcome. When the poor little guy finally gets to the correct colony, he starts building a rock nest, hoping to attract a young lady with his skills. It takes him longer than he has expected because his neighbor keeps stealing his rocks when he’s off getting more! Ed Helms narration here is particularly invaluable because his voice impeccably captures the frustration Steve must be feeling. You’re definitely feeling it for him. When this occurred, there were several disapproving grumbles from the audience. This happens to everyone several times as your attachment to Steve and your concern for his welfare grows. You just want to see him triumph over all the horrid obstacles this cute little guy encounters. 

Steve finally gets his nest made and next, he starts to do what instinct tells him to do… which is to sing! The filmmaker inserts REO Speedwagon’s ‘I Can’t Fight This Feeling Anymore’ into the soundtrack of this moment of Steve’s life. Speaking of, the songs that were chosen for the entire soundtrack, fit perfectly with his entire expedition. After Steve gets his groove on, which is how Penguins meet their beloved, he finds the one to have a family with. It takes him a while, but he manages to draw the attention of one young lady they’ve named Adeline. This is just your typical Hollywood story of romance. You didn’t think he’d be left hangin’, did you? By the way, once they sing and dance together, they will forever be able to use their song to find one another amongst all the rest. You have to admit, that’s astonishing considered how many penguins there are in the world. So, after they get their home life sorted out, and she’s performing the egg hatching thing, he goes for some much-needed R&R. In fact, the males take a long hike to swim and get some food to bring back for the hatchlings. Roy Conli explains that after all of his hard work, it was as if Steve was on ‘Summer Break… only colder.’ Usually, summer break doesn’t include the threat of killer whales, but they appear here… looking for snacks. Even though Conli said, ‘When in the water, they’re incredibly beautiful.’ I wanted to scream at the screen for Steve and the others to ‘Hurry! Get out of the pool!’ There were some beautiful underwater shots of Steve swimming around alone, not paying a bit of attention to the dangerous creatures around him, but they made me nervous. And hungry whales aren’t the only threats these little penguins have to worry about. They also face the bitter cold of 150 miles an hour winds, bitter cold and awful, barbaric Leopard Seals, that can eat approximately 100 baby penguins a day. Baby-snatching birds of prey are problems, too. Some of these scenes may be a touch to watch but only for little ones… if they understand what’s going on. The film is fairly sensitive to everyone while still getting their point across. Long treks parents have to take for food, away from their family, could be the biggest issue because, with only one left there to protect the babies from the elements, it’s difficult sometimes to survive.

Watching this film makes you realize that with what nature has in store for them, it’s amazing we have any penguins at all. At the end of the film, we’re left with Steve waddling again, this time to the song, ‘Here I Go Again’ by Whitesnake, in what looks similar to the opening scene. If all goes to plan and they survive to next mating season, Steve and Adeline will see each other again.

‘Penguins’ is the first Disneynature film to be released in IMAX®. See this on the big screen if you can. It’s worth every minute and every penny. Also, stay to watch a making of during the credits.

“They Shall Not Grow Old” is a film-making marvel and a technological achievement. But much, much more than that: this movie is a tribute and a salute of honor to the many British soldiers who went off to fight in World War I. Many of these brave lads never returned, and ‘they shall not grow old’. Director Peter Jackson has taken actual movie footage from the historical era and transformed it to a documentary that explores the horrors of trench warfare. He has taken hundreds of hours of old footage, along with hundreds of hours of audio interviews – and with this raw material, he has created a fully immersive look at what the average ‘doughboy’ actually experienced at the Front. Working with The Imperial War Museum and the BBC, Jackson has taken and then digitized, colorized and did a 3-D conversion a whole lot of rough grainy badly-shot movie footage. The result is a very informative and in engaging peek into what happened over one hundred years ago.

The original movie cameras back at time produced some very poor quality footage. The film in the camera was over cranked, meaning the speed when projected back later was too fast and jerky. The film was not meant to last forever, so there are many places where it has faded and has accumulated dust particles. Even with this as a starting point, Peter Jackson has gotten some of the most talented film restoration and production people involved in restoring hours of film – frame by frame. His final result becomes a slow build up to the central part – the reconstructed view of the Front Line in World War I.

The beginning is shown in the overly fast-speed and poor quality images of London prior to WWI. When war comes, it is publicized in every way that England needs to fight to exist, and to keep Europe free. With the soundtrack repeating story after story of many under aged fellows getting into the service, it shows how they trained to be a fighting force. Soon, they are over in Belgium and France, and it is obvious that the bombing and shelling has taken a toll. At one point, the black and white image turns into a colorized version. The troops meet their new home in the trenches. They know there are German soldier only dozens of yards away. There is a deadly bog of twisted barbed wire and mines that make up a dreaded “No Man’s Land” between the two sides. Enemy snipers are always ready to take out a soldier who might peek over the side of the trench at the wrong time. There are massive bombardments of mortars and grenades, and these things make for an unpleasant place to be.

It is very odd to see images from over one hundred years ago with this level of sharpness and clarity. The extra added color in many of the scenes add to the depth of experience that you are watching recent newsreel footage. Some of the stories told by the men who served there are stark and full of vivid detail. Most of them contain terrible descriptions of the conditions and the results of the battles fought. Many people died, on both sides. The loss of life was staggering, but almost all the British soldiers did what they know how to do. They carried on. They ate and drank tea, and they would sing bawdy songs, such as “Mademoiselle from Armentières”. But mostly they fought in the “Great War”, because this was the “War to End All Wars”. Little did they know…

But just as the First World War came to an end, this movie also shows that the surviving troops returned home. They were greet as heroes, but promptly were forgotten. The world economy was in shambles, and unemployment was high. When the large influx of soldiers came back to England, there were not as many jobs there as when they left. But each of the men who served at the Front came back with a changed outlook on life. Each one knew at any time, the fragile thread of life could be snapped by the cruel hand of Death. They had seen that up close way too many times. Some retreated into a bottle to combat their own demons. Yet a majority of them stood up straight and became leaders and fathers and the backbone of British society.

Peter Jackson has dedicated this movie to Sgt. William Jackson, his grandfather who served in World War I. So it shows the depth of commitment that he had to make everything about this documentary something very special. He has accomplished this goal.

Per the press release, the producers note that this year marks the 100-year anniversary of the “Great War” coming to an end:

“With this being the 100th anniversary of Armistice Day, I can’t imagine a more appropriate time to honor the courage of the soldiers who fought in WWI — what was then ‘the war to end all wars’ — many of whom made the ultimate sacrifice. Peter has made history come alive through the medium of film, and we are so pleased to be a part of bringing his vision to today’s audiences.”