A powerful, layered experience

Rating: 8/10 (1 December 2006)

The movie begins by introducing an alternative world, one familiar to any who've seen march of the penguins or who's a nature fan. The cinematography takes leaps and bounds, going from shots of the earth spinning beneath the sun to stunning vistas of arctic glaciers, with superb transitions.
The action sequences have a sort of random, edge of your seat thrill as if you were on a roller coaster or a sleigh ride off a glacier, with just the right amount of danger so as not to disturb too greatly the younger viewers. I was particularly pleased with the mish-mosh of the soundtrack, capturing the somewhat blatant references to various styles of music and using them to establish characters, to drive home the concept of a heartsong.
The comic relief is led by no other than Robin Williams, and in the cast he plays a needed role. I was definitely surprised a great deal by the growth and change in the characters; they are far from two dimensional in more than one sense. I haven't enjoyed the layered aspects of the plot since The Incredibles; the self-conscious references to religious conservatism, various cultural norms and all sorts of goodies for those who've spent more than 12 years on this planet. The meaning settles in on you, leaving you with that sense of incompleteness that marks a truly great piece of work, even after the music ends.