Existential post-apocalyptic angst-fest with Moulin Rouge musical numbers

Rating: 7/10 (18 November 2006)

Bambi is sad. Dumbo is sad. This movie is messed up. It's not that it's bad, it's that it's an animated movie about singing penguins directed by the same guy who directed Mad Max, being marketed as if it's another installment of Toy Story. Narratively the film bites off a great deal more than it can chew. Is it a story about how a person who is different can have a valued role in a community? Environmental cautionary tale? Existential post-apocalyptic angst-fest with Moulin Rouge musical numbers? At times quite affecting, with some terrific voice performances and a few hilarious gags, but in the end not at all appropriate (and way too long) for children.