Happy Feet
| Happy Feet | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | George Miller |
| Written by | Warren Coleman John Collee George Miller Judy Morris |
| Produced by | George Miller Doug Mitchell Bill Miller |
| Starring | Elijah Wood Robin Williams Brittany Murphy Hugh Jackman Nicole Kidman Hugo Weaving |
| Music by | John Powell |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Village Roadshow Pictures |
Release dates | November 17, 2006 |
| Language | English |
Happy Feet is an Australian-produced computer-animated film, directed by George Miller. Due for the U.S. release on November 17, 2006, it is being produced at Sydney-based visual effects and animation studio Animal Logic for Warner Bros and Village Roadshow Pictures. This will be the first animated feature film produced by Kennedy Miller in association with Animal Logic.
The film was to be simultaneously released in both conventional theatres and in IMAX 3D format, [1] but Warner Bros has since accounced that, due to time constraints, the initial IMAX release will be 2D only. The studio hinted that a future IMAX 3D release was still a possibility. [2]
Plot
Template:Spoiler Set in an Antarctic emperor penguin colony, the film begins with the premise that every penguin must sing a unique song to attract a soul mate. Mumble, the son of Memphis and Norma Jean, is a terrible singer. He discovers a talent for tap dancing, however, which develops with him into adolescence. The other penguins do not approve of this, and he is eventually exiled from the community. He finds friendship in five small Adelie penguins.
Many sequences and plot devices in the film are similar to those in the French documentary La Marche de l'empereur (aka March of the Penguins), released in 2005, because they both follow the natural history of the penguins' lives. Despite the similarities, both films were in production before details of either were announced. Happy Feet was partially inspired by earlier documentaries such as the BBC's Life in the Freezer.[3] Template:Endspoiler
Soundtrack
The teaser trailer stars a hatchling emperor penguin dancing to the Stevie Wonder song "I Wish." It appears on the March of the Penguins DVD and has been screened in IMAX 3D.
The song featured in the first theatrical trailer [4] is entitled "Jump 'n Move" by The Brand New Heavies featuring Jamal-ski. [5]
The second trailer for the film features Robin Williams performing the song "My Way" in Spanish. [6]
The third trailer features a baby penguin singing "The Message" by Grandmaster Flash, Stevie Wonder's "I Wish", five Adelie penguins singing Chicago's "If You Leave Me Now", and Brittany Murphy singing Queen's "Somebody to Love". [7]
The soundtrack will also include contributions from Pink, k.d. lang, Yolanda Adams, Fantasia Barrino, Gia Farrell, Chrissie Hynde, Patti LaBelle, Jason Mraz and Prince. Savion Glover provided tap-dancing for the film using motion capture technology. [8] [9]
Track Listing
The soundtrack album will include the following tracks.[10]
- (TBA) - Prince
- "Tell Me Something Good" - Pink
- "The Joker" / "Everything I Own" - Jason Mraz / Chrissie Hynde
- "I Wish" - Fantasia Barrino / Patti LaBelle / Yolanda Adams
- "Boogie Wonderland" - Brittany Murphy
- "Somebody To Love" - Brittany Murphy
- "My Way" - Robin Williams
- "Do It Again" - The Wondermints
- "Jump And Move" - The Brand New Heavies
- "Kiss" - Nicole Kidman
- "Golden Slumbers" - k.d. lang
- John Powell Score Suite
Voices
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Elijah Wood | Mumble |
| Robin Williams | Ramone |
| Brittany Murphy | Gloria |
| Hugh Jackman | Memphis |
| Nicole Kidman | Norma Jean |
| Hugo Weaving | Noah the Elder |
| Carlos Alazraqui | Nestor |
| Magda Szubanski | Miss Viola |
| Elizabeth Daily | Young Mumble |
| Anthony LaPaglia | Boss Skua |
| Miriam Margolyes | Mrs Astrakhan |
| Steve Irwin | Kev the Leopard Seal |
Trivia
The film was one of Steve Irwin's final performances.
Video games
A video game based on the film is being developed by A2M and published by Midway Games. It will be released for the following platforms: PC, PlayStation 2, Nintendo GameCube, Nintendo Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS and Wii.[11]. Promotional material and screenshots suggest the game will feature Dance Dance Revolution-style interactive dancing.