Richard Forbush (John Hurt) is a part-time biology student and full-time playboy in swinging London. He has no trouble attracting the ladies until he meets the lovely Tara (Hayley Mills) who is immune to his charms. Determined to impress her, he takes a job studying penguins for six months in Antarctica - alone.
First of all, the picture and sound quality on this DVD are terrible. While the movie is filmed in color, the part set in Antarctica is just gray, with no blue skies or water even on sunny days. The script is predictable and cliché, too. It is quite interesting to see John Hurt as a young swinger if you've only seen him as old Mr. Ollivander from the "Harry Potter" films, but he's hardly convincing as a lady-killer. Thankfully he does mature as he endures the rigors of Antarctica and falls in love with the penguins.
The second half of the movie is semi-documentary with Forbush's dry, sarcastic commentary adding some humor, but the focus is on him, not nature. We never spend time with or really engage with the penguins because the photography is jerky and rushed. This movie doesn't hold a candle to more beautiful and emotionally-compelling movies like "March of the Penguins;" it's just a low-budget story of a self-centered man who grows up while living among the penguins.
First of all, the picture and sound quality on this DVD are terrible. While the movie is filmed in color, the part set in Antarctica is just gray, with no blue skies or water even on sunny days. The script is predictable and cliché, too. It is quite interesting to see John Hurt as a young swinger if you've only seen him as old Mr. Ollivander from the "Harry Potter" films, but he's hardly convincing as a lady-killer. Thankfully he does mature as he endures the rigors of Antarctica and falls in love with the penguins.
The second half of the movie is semi-documentary with Forbush's dry, sarcastic commentary adding some humor, but the focus is on him, not nature. We never spend time with or really engage with the penguins because the photography is jerky and rushed. This movie doesn't hold a candle to more beautiful and emotionally-compelling movies like "March of the Penguins;" it's just a low-budget story of a self-centered man who grows up while living among the penguins.