When you're staring down the barrel of the last four weeks of the semester, there's nothing better to lift your spirits than a good ol' fashioned animated film.
"Happy Feet" delivers just that and more, with a host of big-name stars lending their voice talents to the film's appeal, including Elijah Wood, Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman and comedic legend Robin Williams.
Although the film was marketed for children strictly, "Happy Feet" throws a curveball for adult viewers' appeal, with its "Save the Penguins"-like message.
The Warner Bros. film centers around a free-spirited penguin named Mumble (Wood), who has an uncontrollable passion for dance even before hatching from his egg.
But penguins in Mumble's society sing, not dance - and Mumble can't carry a tune to save his life.
Immediately, Mumble is outcast among his fellow penguins for his "happy feet" and inability to sing.
But the vibrant little penguin stays true to his dancing feet, by tapping far from the wandering eyes of his friends. During one of these escapades, Mumble meets up with a pack of hungry hawks, one of which tells Mumble of "aliens" that abducted him and strapped a yellow tag on his ankle.
As the film moves on, Mumble encounters new friends at a separate penguin colony - the Amigos, led by the lively and flirtatious Ram—n (Williams).
It's at this colony where the film takes off into an environmentalist theme. The Amigos take Mumble to meet the great Lovelace (also voiced by Williams), so Mumble can ask him about the "aliens."
Lovelace - a character whose mannerisms mirror those of Rafiki from Disney's "The Lion King" (1994) - wears a great "talisman" around his neck given to him by "the gods." This talisman, as viewers will recognize, is nothing more than a leftover six-pack ring from a pack of soda, which ends up choking Lovelace to near death.
When Mumble sets off with the Amigos and Lovelace to find the "aliens" and get this "talisman" removed, Mumble finds a whole different world he never expected and sets out to save his colony from starvation.
"Happy Feet" certainly entertains with its numerous song-and-dance sequences, but the turn of events into a "Save the Penguins" movement is unexpected and almost awkward for an animated family film. Children probably won't understand this subplot, but it does keep adults' focus.
Williams returns to animation in full force with all the hilarity and enthusiasm he brought as the Genie in Disney's "Aladdin" (1992).
Jackman also shows his versatility in accents by trading his native Australian accent for a flawless southern drawl. It's a little unexpected from Jackman, but the voice makes a great character in the film.
The casting hit its weakest point with Kidman as Mumble's mother, Norma Jean. Her voice was so incredibly high-pitched, you wouldn't recognize it as Kidman unless you knew it was her.
Despite its tangent off into the world of environmentalism, "Happy Feet" offers just the feel-good lift you need to pull through the rest of the semester, and it will have you leaving the theater with an extra bounce in your step.