Review of Happy Feet (2006) by Branh. — 28 Nov 2006

I'd give this movie an 8 for ambition, but a 3 for execution. The film has 2 agendas, one of which reviewers and audience members alike seem to have totally missed. The first is the well-recognized eco-agenda that shows up in the last 30 minutes of the movie (practically out of the blue) and which, though creatively and compellingly handled initially, is ridiculously resolved in the closure of the film.

The second, which is both the one that is missed and the one that drives the film's plot, is Mumble's personal storyline - which is a very thinly veiled metaphor about the experience of coming out and seeking community acceptance as a gay man.

Mumble is "different" from birth, he's inherently happy (read: gay) about who he is and doesn't mind his difference at all, he is rejected by his community and his father particularly, and finds a new community with sassy, brassy, carefree, dancing, party animals who appear to lack serious convictions about major life issues (a metaphor for the gay bar scene).

I like that the gay agenda is presented in such honest and matter-of-fact terms and think that the movie could've been a wonderful one had the filmmakers simplified their presentation around that, but the rest of the movie is just so confused and sloppy - once the eco-agenda is added in to the picture, and issues of madness and depression are thrown in, as well as various religious/metaphystical issues.

.. Well, the movie just gets totally confused, loses its momentum, and, as a result, can't support it's story nor it's twin agendas very effectively.