Farce of the Penguins (2006) (V)

User Rating:

4.0/10   

Director:

Bob Saget

Writer:

Bob Saget (writer)

Release Date:

22 February 2007 (Iceland)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

What Happens In Antarctica... Stays in Antarctica

Plot:

A mockumentary that illuminates penguin survival and mating rituals, as well as one bird's search for love while on a 70-mile trek with his hedonistic buddies.

Plot Keywords:

Penguin | South Pole | Bird | Flatulence | March

Cast

Samuel L. Jackson	...	Narrator (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jason Alexander	...	Penguin on Belly (voice)
Christina Applegate	...	Melissa (voice)
James Belushi	...	They're all bitches Penguin (voice)
Jason Biggs	...	Insecure Penguin (voice)
Lewis Black	...	Jimmy (voice)
Mario Cantone	...	Sidney (voice)
Dane Cook	...	Online Penguin (voice)
Dave Coulier	...	There's no snow Penguin (voice)
Norm Crosby	...	Carl's Grandfather (voice)
Drea de Matteo	...	Ester (voice)
Cliff Dorfman	...	Angry Penguin (voice)
Adam Duritz	...	Sensitive Guy Penguin (voice)
Vanessa Lee Evigan	...	Hilton Penguin (voice)
Harvey Fierstein	...	Sheila (voice)
Whoopi Goldberg	...	Helen (voice)
Gilbert Gottfried	...	Freezing Nuts Penguin (voice)
Alyson Hannigan	...	Hottie Penguin (voice)
Jim Hazelton	...	No Personality Penguin (voice)
Jonathan Katz	...	Steve The Owl (voice)
Jamie Kennedy	...	Jamie (voice)
David Koechner	...	Melvin (voice)
Brie Larson	...	I need a Z-pack Penguin (voice)
Lori Loughlin	...	Melvin-Smacking Penguin (voice)
Jon Lovitz	...	My eyes are up here Penguin (voice)
Norm MacDonald	...	Join Twosomes Penguin (voice)
Carlos Mencia	...	Juan Sanchez (voice)
David Michie	...	Sly Penguin (voice)
Mo'Nique	...	Vicky (voice)
Tracy Morgan	...	Marcus (voice)
Bob Saget	...	Carl (voice)
Jonathan Silverman	...	Seal Critics (voice)
Nick Simunek	...	Daddy likes that Penguin (voice)
John Stamos	...	What's global warming Penguin (voice)
Jodie Sweetin	...	He's so gross Penguin (voice)
Abe Vigoda	...	Penguin from Boca (voice)
Damon Wayans	...	Hey, that's my ass! Penguin (voice)
Rob Weiss	...	Pissed Penguin (voice)

MPAA:

Rated R for pervasive crude sexual content and language.

Runtime:

80 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

USA:R | UK:15 | Finland:K-11 | Singapore:NC-16 | Japan:R-15 | Netherlands:12

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

FOTP Productions

Trivia:

With the exceptions of Candace Cameron Bure and Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen, the entire family cast from "Full House" (1987) had speaking roles in this movie.

Goofs:

Continuity: The scene in which Jimmy asks Carl and Sidney what is "Black and White on the outside, and Red on the inside," and the Carl replies with "Marcus?" the scenery around them changes frequently between shots.

Quotes:

Narrator: Antarctica is one-and-a-half times the size of the United States, a claim once made in the 1960s by Cuba. But this isn't the story about a country who's just waiting for their next dictator to die. This is the story about the amazing creatures who for millions of years have lived here, in Mother Earth's frigid, white anus. This is a story about survival. It is a story about determination, but mainly it is a story about love, penguin love. This is the farce of the penguins!

Movie Connections:

References "Survivor" (2000)

Soundtrack:

Relax Your Body

Contains a relative amount of laughs, but the novelty wears off after a while

Bob Saget is a talented comedian, without a doubt. Anyone who only knows him from "Full House" and "America's Funniest Home Videos" is missing out on a lot. He is by no means a wholesome, family-oriented comedian that most people expect. His brand of comedy is uniquely edgy, and the fact that these dirty things are coming out of Danny Tanner's mouth makes him even funnier. Like with one of his previous directorial efforts "Dirty Work," "Farce of the Penguins" has several moments where you're laughing at the film more than with it. Unfortunately, this film has way too moments where it breaks the fourth wall, with moments like two French penguins (supposedly from the hit "March of the Penguins") watching the film and snobbishly criticizing it for being too crude. I can't deny that I was laughing throughout at least 70 percent of the film. It's certainly not a bad idea for a film: Making a parody of "MOTP" by using found footage and providing funny voice-overs. But like I said, the novelty wears off after a while. What is the novelty? The penguins are supposedly talking to each other...yet their mouths don't move. OK, I know you're supposed to suspend disbelief when watching movies, but this is a little too much disbelief to suspend. Even if this were an animated flick, the penguins mouths would be moving, helping the audience suspend disbelief. The voices are provided by tons of talented comedians, including (one of my favorites) Lewis Black, Whoopi Goldberg, Mo'Nique, Carlos Mencia, and Mario Cantone. Luckily, the way overrated Dane Cook only has a small cameo. The main voices are provided by Saget and Black, who both deliver plenty of laughs. OK, I'm not going to totally bash the film's visuals. There are moments where the stock footage is used wisely. Saget had a lot of experience providing voice-overs to found footage when he hosted "America's Funniest Home Videos." I'm sure that helped him conjure up the idea for this film. But film is, after all, a visual medium. So watching the same boring shots of penguins waddling across the ice or simply standing around gets tiresome after a while. I appreciate Saget's effort, but the idea could've been executed more effectively. Look out for Gilbert Gottfried's cameo. It's probably the funniest moment in the film.