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March of the Penguins Tops Box Offices

Posted by Zonk on Mon Aug 08, 2005 02:26 AM
from the waddle-waddle-waddle dept.
Media Movies Software Science Linux
Zinside writes "Yahoo News is running a story stating that March of the Penguins may become the No. 2 documentary of all time at U.S. box offices." From the article: "The film, which follows a pack of Emperor Penguins during an arduous mating season, had grossed $18.4 million by Wednesday and was poised to surpass the $21.6 million for Michael Moore's anti-gun documentary Bowling For Columbine. For 13 months, Jacquet and his crew braved Antarctic temperatures as low as 70 degrees below zero - and winds up to 150 mph - to capture astonishing images of thousands of emperor penguins engaging in a mating and child-rearing ritual that is nothing short of astonishing. The Penguins are a miraculous species, capable of extreme heroism, self-sacrifice, sorrow and unshakable love."
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  • And the best part is at the end when Opus is finally reunited with his mother. ;-)

    - Greg

    • Re:And the best part... (Score:4, Insightful)

      by l.b. noire (84671) on Monday August 08 2005, @03:57AM (#13267900)
      The Penguins are a miraculous species, capable of extreme heroism, self-sacrifice, sorrow and unshakable love.

      They're also capable of extreme homosexuality. [ananova.com]

          • Re:And the best part... (Score:5, Funny)

            by GeckoX (259575) on Monday August 08 2005, @10:32AM (#13269804)

            We are supposed to be above all other forms of life on this earth. We are supposed to be able to control our baser instincts and not behave as animals do. That's the point. We are at the stage in evolution where the next step is spiritual, not physical. We should not degrade ourselves by giving in and returning back to animalistic behavior.


            I think my mom threw out my instruction book when I was born, could you please send me your copy so I can finally know exactly what I am _supposed_ to do with my life?

            Thanks.

          • Re:And the best part... (Score:5, Insightful)

            by Jeremi (14640) on Monday August 08 2005, @11:43AM (#13270591) Homepage
            Homosexuality is not "natural" to the extent that it is, at best, unproductive in the view of a species which intends to perpetuate itself


            Even this is debatable. It's entirely possible that a modest rate of homosexuality actually helps a (highly socialized) species survive, in that it decreases the the possibility of overpopulation, decreases the amount of (potentially disruptive) competition for females, and frees up some extra individuals from the burdens of child rearing so that they can devote their efforts to other things that are useful to the species as a whole (e.g. defending the group from invaders/predators).


            My feeling is that evolution doesn't make too many "mistakes", and so if homosexuality is something that appears in many species, then it's likely there is a good (albeit non-obvious) reason for it.

  • Oooh... (Score:5, Funny)

    by xAXISx (855579) <xaxisxNO@SPAMgmail.com> on Monday August 08 2005, @02:28AM (#13267640) Homepage
    ...for a second there, I thought it was linux related ;).
  • I am fascinated that a nature documentary is garnering this much attention. I'm not sure if it is saying something about the audience, or if it is saying something about the quality of this season's Hollywood crop.

    There is a meme in certain circles that G-rated films gross higher than R-rated films. Could this kind of flocking (hehe) to see a documentary about penguins be indicative of a trend towards a silent audience demand for wholesome, informative movies rather than violent and crass fare?
    • Could this kind of flocking (hehe) to see a documentary about penguins be indicative of a trend towards a silent audience demand for wholesome, informative movies rather than violent and crass fare?

      I think it's actually due to a very loud audience of prepubescent children who, after being saturated with advertisements during Yi-Gi-Oh, continually pester their parents to the point of either getting to go see the movie or being tied in a bag and thrown off the nearest bridge.

    • There is a meme in certain circles that G-rated films gross higher than R-rated films. Could this kind of flocking (hehe) to see a documentary about penguins be indicative of a trend towards a silent audience demand for wholesome, informative movies rather than violent and crass fare?

      In the meantime, the R-rated "The Wedding Crashers" is a summer sleeper as well, running at #2 for it's first two weekends, then up to #1 in its third weekend, then back to #2 this weekend, putting it's tally for less than 4 full weeks at over $144 million. And while "March..." did really well this weekend, it's because it nearly tripled its screen count. Yet vs. "The Wedding Crashers" it had a lower per-screen gross ($3709 vs. $5312) on fewer screens (1867 vs. 3106).

      We'll have to watch it longer term to see if it's legs keep up.

      What's neat to observe is that Warner Bros. is rolling in the dough this weekend with the gamut of ratings.

      This Weekend's Top Grossers
      #1: Dukes of Hazzard (Warner Brothers) - PG-13
      #2: The Wedding Crashers (Newline - owned by WB) - R
      #3: Charlie and the chocolate Factory (Warner Brothers) - PG
      #5: Must Love Dogs (Warner Brothers) - PG-13
      #6: March of the Penguins (Warner Independent) - G

      - Greg

    • Plenty of documentaries of this kind exist, and none of them have made this kind of a splash. (It is currently number 6 in the weekly movie charts, beating both War of the Worlds and Fantastic Four.)


      As a piece of trivia, March of the Penguins grossed more per screen shown on than the Fantastic Four did, in the Fantastic Four's first week. (Although MotP didn't make a whole lot of cash, it was only shown on 64 screens, whereas FF was shown on a something like 3,500. Those of you who also visit K5 may remember my diary entry on it at the time.)


      Ultimately, it is the selling value of the narrator that probably made the big difference. HOWEVER, Hollywood pays attention to box office figures, and the fact that a wildlife documentary could hit the number 6 spot may cause them to seriously think about how they make movies for kids. (They're going to assume that kids are the main audience, whether that is true or not.)


      If wildlife sells, then expect it to be merchandised to death. Having said that, it would be one hell of an improvement if kids get SOME natural history in their diet, as opposed to the turgid carp they get at the moment.

    • Re:What does it say about the mainstream audience? (Score:5, Funny)

      by lxs (131946) on Monday August 08 2005, @03:33AM (#13267843)
      ...the quality of this season's Hollywood crop.

      You made a typo in that last word.

  • Penguintastica (Score:4, Funny)

    by Anne Thwacks (531696) on Monday August 08 2005, @02:39AM (#13267683)
    The Penguins are a miraculous species, capable of extreme heroism, self-sacrifice, sorrow and unshakable love."

    And they write great software too!!!

  • An astonishing and moving film. Evokes emotions... (Score:5, Interesting)

    by loggia (309962) on Monday August 08 2005, @02:43AM (#13267701)
    This film evokes emotions that are hard to put into words.

    Simply put, it is truly astonishing and moving -- and leaves you with a feeling that stays with you long after you leave the theater. I guess that feeling is: life.

    • Re:An astonishing and moving film. Evokes emotions (Score:5, Insightful)

      by drgonzo59 (747139) on Monday August 08 2005, @04:00AM (#13267904)
      I agree. I saw it with my wife and we both liked it very much. I think there are a couple of components here that make it such a good movie.

      [1] It is G rated. I guess some people are sick of car chases, boobies and scary monsters - go figure! The "naughtiest" part is penguins doing "it" to make more penguins. I actually saw a parent take their child out of the theatre for this one. Felt sorry for the poor kid...

      [2] Penguins are somewhat similar to humans in the way they walk and behave. They walk upright but wobble and thus they look like "cute", "fat", "fuzzy" people. You couldn't pull this one off with snakes or, tigers. They are social creatures. In the movie ( I hope I don't spoil it for anyone ;) a mother penguin who lost her egg, tries to steal the chick from another penguin. The other females in the group would not "approve" of such behavior and came to protect the chick and the mother from the "thief".

      Also penguins are monogamous (emperor penguins are monogamous at least for duration of one year) - which often is not the case with many humans nowadays - not that there is anything wrong with it... So that also anthropomorphosizes them even more.

      [3] The bravery and determination of the people who shot the movie is impressive. Very cold weather, very dangerous, all just to film the cute little birds. And, of course, as some post mentioned, some like Morgan Freeman.

      [4] It spread mostly by word of mouth. This is similar to the "My Big Fat Greek Wedding". A small movie that made big $ because everyone told their friends to go see and how great it was. I heard about the movie from my parents then after I saw it, I recommended it to all my friends and they saw it. If everyone who see it does it - it is quite a few people..

    • Re:An astonishing and moving film. Evokes emotions (Score:4, Insightful)

      by tetsuji (572812) on Monday August 08 2005, @10:04AM (#13269514) Homepage

      Yes, it was moving and wonderful an all, but I was pretty disappointed about the lack of useful factual information. I thought that the movie excessively anthropomorphized the penguins and that it didn't present the information in scientific terms.

      For example, in the movie they show the consequences of the penguins dropping their eggs and losing track of chicks, but nowhere in the film do they state what the survival rate of the chicks is. They show an albatross catching and killing a penguin chick while adult penguins stand around and do nothing, and fail to explain the lack of a response. They also say nothing about the ongoing environmental changes in the antarctic and how these may affect the penguins.

      I went in to the documentary hoping to see some science, but it turned out to be mostly pretty pictures and emotionally loaded nonsense.

  • Now you know.. (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Bananatree3 (872975) on Monday August 08 2005, @02:45AM (#13267704)
    The Penguins are a miraculous species, capable of extreme heroism, self-sacrifice, sorrow and unshakable love."

    Now you know why the Penguin is Linux's mascot. It is reliable, unshakable, self-sacrificing (think of all those selfless developers working night and day around the world), extreme heroism (ok, that might be taking it a little too far...)

    • Re:Now you know.. (Score:5, Funny)

      by lxs (131946) on Monday August 08 2005, @03:40AM (#13267857)
      That's just typical of the Slashdot audience. How can you forget the sacrifices Windows '95 made? It died for your sins. Sometimes three times a day.

    • Re:Now you know.. (Score:4, Insightful)

      by Registered Coward v2 (447531) on Monday August 08 2005, @06:58AM (#13268344)
      The Penguins are a miraculous species, capable of extreme heroism, self-sacrifice, sorrow and unshakable love."

      Now you know why the Penguin is Linux's mascot. It is reliable, unshakable, self-sacrificing (think of all those selfless developers working night and day around the world), extreme heroism (ok, that might be taking it a little too far...)

      and doomed to exist only in isolation on an island, where only a few heart souls seek it out?

  • Bill Gates isn't playing this in Redmond (Score:3, Funny)

    by rolfwind (528248) on Monday August 08 2005, @02:46AM (#13267709)
    March of the Penguins:

    http://www.ecliptic.ch/Stock/Detail/RE0908_Linux_o ver_Windows.html [ecliptic.ch]

    http://forum.osnn.net/photopost/data/508/medium/40 Linux_Penguins1024.png [osnn.net]

    Isn't that the title of the nightmares Mr. Gates has had whenever he wakes up in a cold sweat.........

  • Tag line from film (Score:3, Funny)

    by AccUser (191555) <.ku.oc.esoat. .ta. .ghm.> on Monday August 08 2005, @02:53AM (#13267734) Homepage
    In the harshest place on Earth, linux finds a way
  • Pretty good. It makes you forget your problems as the hardships facing penguins just trying to raise their chicks makes your problems seem completely insignificant.

    So, strangely enough, I would not qualify this movie as a nature documentary. For me it is genuine bona fida "escapist entertainment": 90 minutes to gawk at something so alien to your existence that it puts everything else in perspective when you emerge blinking from the theater.

    And that is exactly what movies and entertainment are supposed to do. And that explains this movies success.

    Bonus item: this movie teaches us that hundreds of thousands of years of evolution in the harshest terrestrial environment on earth has left the penguin with large rolls of belly fat as a major and important adaptation for survival (to protect the chick/ egg from the harsh cold). So eat your popcorn and drink your soda guilt free. ;-)

    • Re:Just saw it tonight (Score:4, Insightful)

      by drgonzo59 (747139) on Monday August 08 2005, @04:19AM (#13267941)
      It is alien, yet people see themselves (or rather human ideals) in the penguins. Penguins overcome hardships to raise their children - that makes them like humans and humans identify with them. Penguins are monogamous (at least for the period of one mating season) - which is an ideal that many humans today don't live up to, again people identify with the penguins. Penguins are social creatures their behavior sometimes projects this "social justice" that any American likes, for example when one mother who lost her chick, tries to steal the chick from another penguin, all the females around came to protect the chick and to fight off the "thief".

      A good fantasy or sci-fi, or any story about alien places and creatures is successful (=appeals to the audience) only if they emobody human ideals in them like justice, honesty, self-sacrifice, love, beauty, overcoming adversity and other such things. In other words if you had a movie about worms that live at the bottom of the ocean, or even some alien bacteria (or just mattrasses that sit around ) from Mars or say Titan, you couldn't entice the audience as much.

  • A more important question... (Score:5, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday August 08 2005, @02:58AM (#13267751)
    >>>The Penguins are a miraculous species, capable of extreme heroism, self-sacrifice, sorrow and unshakable love.

    More importantly, how do they taste? Fried, baked, or stewed? Anyone?

  • When it's on DVD I'll say... (Score:4, Funny)

    by amliebsch (724858) on Monday August 08 2005, @03:03AM (#13267760) Journal
    Oooh! There's a penguin on the television!

  • incorrect statement (Score:3, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday August 08 2005, @03:06AM (#13267773)
    from the article: "to surpass the $21.6 million for Michael Moore's anti-gun documentary Bowling For Columbine"

    Obviously whoever wrote that never watched "Bowling For Columbine" or is trying to distort what it's about. Say what you want about the documentary but any honest person can tell you it's not anti-gun.

    It you watch it, weather you agree with it or not, it's final premis is that the culture of fear and violence perpetrated by our foreign policy and the mass-media that supports it, that seems to cause the staggering amount of gun deaths in the US...not guns. In fact there are arguments made that it's not the guns (I remember the comparison to canada). Michael Moore himself is a member of the NRA.

    This may be taken as flamebait or trolling or whatever but that statement made there about "Bowling for Columbine" is simply not correct.

      • Re:incorrect statement (Score:5, Insightful)

        by WankersRevenge (452399) on Monday August 08 2005, @08:15AM (#13268702) Homepage
        You obviously have never studied any film theory, for if you had, you would have realized that documentaries are not objective. Not one bit. Sure, some might have strive for balance, but at the end of the day, documentaries are arguments using both moving images and narration to back up their "truths". Some, like Moore's documentaries, are very obvious about it. Others, like this Penguin one, are subtle. But at the end of the day, both are making arguments.

        As a viewer, you are being shown a very small piece of "reality". You don't know what happened before or after the event. You don't what a subject said before or after the presented clip. Think about it - the mere acting of editing a conversation shows that the documentary filmmaker is being subjective. What makes him use the first part of the clip, instead of the middle part. Or even the last part? He's using it to back his argument.

        By saying you wish to preserve the "legitimacy" of the documentary is saying you want to put critical thinking aside. There is no legitimacy. Whether it appears to be subjective or not, liberal or conservative, about animals on the Savannah or men on the moon, documentaries are all arguments proporting a certain world view.

  • Grand Movie for a Grand Movie Theater (Score:3, Informative)

    by SoupIsGood Food (1179) * on Monday August 08 2005, @03:09AM (#13267779)
    None of the big chain theaters have picked this film up here in Newport, RI, so the Jane Pickens Theater [cinematreasure.com], one of the last of the single-screen Movie Houses from the golden age of movies, gets to cash in.

    It's got an enormous screen, bazillions of seats (including a balcony!) and a Dolby surround-sound system that became the prototype for the one found in most theaters today. It was one of the only places film conservators could show acetate-based films before restoration, because the projection booth still had all its steel fire-shutters from the '20s operational. (An equipment change in the late '90s, and the growing trend to preserve, duplicate and restore before screening, ended the practice.) They sometimes still show cartoon shorts before the movie, on reels they've had since the '60s.

    The Pickens also ran Farenheight 9/11, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Chicago and The Nightmare Before Christmas when none of the chain multi-plexes would take the chance.

    Support your local movie house!

  • In other news... (Score:4, Funny)

    by jtbauki (838979) on Monday August 08 2005, @03:10AM (#13267785)

    ...President George W. Bush vows to fight anti-freedom around the world.


    "Who do these penguins think they are? Calling themselves 'Emperors'? We, in America, do not tolerate such anti-democratic policies. Let the penguins have their rights. These penguins are part of the axis of evil..."

  • Anti-gun? (Score:5, Interesting)

    by skingers6894 (816110) on Monday August 08 2005, @03:10AM (#13267786)
    I'm not sure "Bowling for Columbine" was simply "anti-gun". I seem to remember that it went a little deeper than that. If I remember correctly the movie asked why the per capita gun-related murders in the U.S. were higher than Canada even though the per-capita gun ownership was lower.

    Something like that. While it was a gun related documentary I don't think it was imply "anti-gun".

    Anyway, no such controversy with the penguin movie - it's pro penguin alright.

    • Re:Anti-gun? (Score:5, Interesting)

      by OSXCPA (805476) on Monday August 08 2005, @06:27AM (#13268241) Journal
      Bowling for columbine was not, in my opinion, 'anti gun'. The thing I got from the film that I think transcends anything Moore has caught hell for, is the sheer magnitude of the effect fear has on a culture. Those of you who spent adolescence in a state of hormonal turmoil whipped by abject fear, you know exactly what I mean. American media subscribe to the 'it bleeds, it leads' and as a result, despite decreasing rates of violent crime (go google it) from 1970-2000, reporting on crime went way up. Consequence - we don't let our kids play outside unless there is a fleet of adults around, because 'something bad' might happen. And it might, but it is no more likely today than it was in 1975, when I was running around outside alone. A kid today would be safer than I was, but fear doesn't let us (Americans) accept that. I'm curious what expats living in the US think.

  • You might also like.. (Score:5, Informative)

    by dasdrewid (653176) on Monday August 08 2005, @03:24AM (#13267822)
    I don't know if anyone has mentioned this or not (/me is lazy), but if you liked this film, you might wanna also check out Winged Migration [imdb.com], by Jacques Perrin [imdb.com]. It's good on details, and incredibly beautiful. If you suffer a bit from add (/me again), you'll like it cause it's split into regions of the world, so you can take it bit by bit, if you don't think you can stand 2 hours straight of birds flying...

  • Anthropomorphization (Score:5, Insightful)

    by TomHandy (578620) <tomhandy&gmail,com> on Monday August 08 2005, @03:42AM (#13267864)
    The footage in this movie is incredible, no doubt. However, I think one valid concern that has been raised about it is its tendency for anthropomorphization of the penguins. The narration often ascribes various human emotions and motivations to the footage that is shown, and realistically, this probably isn't accurate and probably leaves a lot of audiences with the wrong impression. It's certainly understandable why this was done (if nothing else, penguins especially are prone to anthropomorphization anyway), but when this does come out on DVD, I think it might be nice to be able to just watch the footage and turn off the narration.

  • Jacquet and his crew also braved (Score:5, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday August 08 2005, @03:51AM (#13267882)
    Thirteen months of EXTREME CUTENESS!!! Oh my god! Mother of Hello Kitty in a hand basket! belly sliding, wing flapping, fuzzy little baby penguin extreme cuteness as far as the eye can see! And the waddling!! Oh! the waddling!!!

    • Re:You know... (Score:5, Insightful)

      by gbulmash (688770) * <semi_famousNO@SPAMyahoo.com> on Monday August 08 2005, @02:34AM (#13267667) Homepage Journal
      Penguins are actual animal. Linus Torvalds did not invent them. I fail to see the relevance of some boring smelly animal on slashdot, or some movie about said creature.

      The interesting thing (or "news for nerds") is that a scientific documentary has become the second-highest grossing non-IMAX documentary in history... as opposed to another one where Michael Moore makes fun of people he disagrees with.

      - Greg

        • Re:Not #2 yet, and no chance for #1 (Score:4, Interesting)

          by Gactaculon (709191) on Monday August 08 2005, @05:55AM (#13268158)
          I don't know about you, but I think that when I look back on my life many years later, I'll consider it much more important to have spent time watching something emotive and novel than consuming political propaganda. The films I've seen, the art and music I've enjoyed, and the places I've explored either in person or by proxy will be very much valued, when all is said and done. I can't say the same for Fahrenheit 9/11, for example. Perhaps it is important for the number of people it reached for whom its ideas were new, I'll grant that. But to the informed and interested viewer, it was little more than a rehash of world events through the prism of Moore's crazed psyche. I mean, seriously, the argument that seeing one man's inherently biased and un-countered rant rendered on film is prerequisite to making important choices is total bullshit, assuming you bother to read once in a while. Yes, I'm being a bit overzealous with the critique of Fahrenheit, but I can't see how anything like it can be considered truly enlightening and significant on a personly level.

          So I guess what I'm saying is that I think you may have your priorities severely confused. Yes, there are important and momentous events and conflicts happening in the world. There always are. They oblige us to become involved and to form our own opinions and to seek truth, but more obsession does not mean more effect. The truly important things are the things that happen in the midst of constant turmoil that make life worth bothering with. Nobody and no philosophy is going to force us to seek these things out and partake in them, and it's up to us to make sure they don't pass us by. That's the uglier truth.

          I don't know whether this documentary is really any good or not, or whether it warrants this sleep-deprived, starry-eyed rant at all. But to rank works like this to be *by definition* of lesser importance than political discourse reveals a very narrow point of view.

          (And please stop with the mouth-frothing. It's very unsanitary.)

        • Re:Not #2 yet, and no chance for #1 (Score:5, Funny)

          by WesternActor (300755) on Monday August 08 2005, @06:49AM (#13268312) Homepage
          The #1 documentary is Farenheit 9/11 , which is completely out of the league of normal documentaries.

          You're right. Most documentaries document reality.

    • Sounds like you'd appreciate the Mr Cranky review, which starts out "I hate penguins. I just fucking hate them.":

      http://www.mrcranky.com/movies/marchofthepenguins. html [mrcranky.com]

    • /. relevancy (Score:5, Funny)

      by tacarat (696339) on Monday August 08 2005, @02:37AM (#13267679) Journal
      "For 13 months, Jacquet and his crew braved Antarctic temperatures as low as 70 degrees below zero - and winds up to 150 mph - to capture astonishing images of thousands of emperor penguins engaging in a mating... ritual"

      1) A lot of server rooms may as well be -70 degrees, so any sysad could empathize with the conditions (sans sunlight, of course).

      2) Any Slashdotter has at least one interest that the "normal population" would give a hearty 'WTF?' to.

      3) A demonstration of the amazing lengths some folks will go through for their penguin porn.
    • Penguins are actual animal. Linus Torvalds did not invent them.
      Not only he didn't invent them; he hates the "fat little flightless bird" [linux.org]... ;-)

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