Documentary Analysis: March of the Penguins (as told by Morgan Freeman)

March of the Penguins (as told by Morgan Freeman)

What is the subject of the film?

Coldest, driest, windiest land… tale of survival, but more – story about love

Embark on a remarkable journey

Journey to the birth-place of penguins

Who are the characters?

Emperor penguins – birds that live in the sea, but in this journey will walk most of the way

Male emperor penguins & female emperor penguins’ different roles

Is the film told from a subjective or objective point of view? How do you know that?

The narrator quite obviously admires or has respect for the emperor penguins’ way of life, determination, will to live and methods they have constructed to better their odds of survival, and so his story telling is subjective, influenced by his own personal views. However this admiration for penguins does not cast any negative features of the story into darkness – he discusses the pain of a mother, who just lost her chick, and who might even try stealing another mothers’ chick; he does not blame the leopard seal for quelling its hunger by hunting the penguins, though he does say that by eating the mother, the leopard seal takes two lives – that of the mother and that of the chick who will starve. The story is told from a mildly subjective point of view, but this does not take away from any of the facts and information being delivered.

Why do you think the filmmaker chose to tell the story this way?

In using a subjective point of view, the narrator may be able to better connect with the audience on an emotional level, and may serve to attract the audience in to the story and wanting to watch it through all the way to the end.

The subject of penguins is already one full of emotions (adoration etc.) and it is easier to simply go with the flow of emotion, than to be cold and tell the story from a stale, distant point of view. If the narrator is not interested in the topic, why should the audience be?

How do you think the film would be different if it had been a fiction film?

Focus on 1 or a few specific, special characters that have a goal to reach by overcoming challenges that allow the character to evolve (e.g. Happy Feet)

More drama, suspense, romance, other techniques to grip the audience and get them to promote the film so that makers of the film make more money

What kinds of sound does the filmmaker use? Is silence an important part of the soundtrack? What dialogue, music, voice-overs, commentary and sound effects? What purpose do they serve?

Narration, sound effects, ambient sound and soundtracks

The most important sounds are the voice over/narrations, the sounds the characters are making, and the soundtrack

The narration explains what is happening and educates the audience; the sound effects make the documentary more realistic and also educate viewers on the sounds and calls emperor penguins make…; the sound track, as exampled below, evoke emotions from the audience and make the documentary more enjoyable.

How do music, sound and image work together to convey the story of the documentary?

When the penguins change from walking to sliding, the music gets more upbeat, louder, friendly, joyful, excited – adding to the remarkable sight of penguin’s unique trait of sliding across ice on their bellies

When the sun starts to set, or time is otherwise progressing, the music turns softer, slower, and “sleepier”

Freeman listing out things they will do + image of them doing that thing + sounds of the thing (e.g. squawking)

“Contact sport”, music adds to the humor

After everybody has found the one they’re looking for, flute plays romantic melody

Dancing the ballet of changing parental roles - harp

Does the film use a narrator? If so, what role does the narrator play? What attitude does he or she take to the subject? How does this attitude contribute to the film’s overall message?

Morgan Freeman narrates this documentary, telling the story, describing the penguin’s actions, and explaining the results.

He seems to hold great respect for the emperor penguins, amazed by their strength, endurance, will and natural ability to live in such harsh conditions.

This attitude makes the process of giving birth to the chicks all the more impressive.

Is the filmmaker a character within the film? If so, what role does he or she play?

No, the only characters in the film are the emperor penguins, creating a natural, realistic, un-disturbed view of what the penguins must go through in the harsh winters.

What does this documentary reveal about the world? How does the filmmaker help the audience experience the world with new eyes?

This documentary explains the process emperor penguins go through every winter to give birth to the next generation, and the different hardships the males and females must go through, each hurdle they must overcome, and how they might do it.

What story is told in the film? How is it scripted? How has the editing of the film affected its final message?

As answered above, the documentary tells the story of the emperor penguins’ hardships to make chicks. This key purpose has focused the scripting and editing of the film, so that all features are to explain/clarify the process and hardships they face.

What kinds of camera techniques are used? How do these choices help the filmmaker get across the message?

When the leopard seal hunts the female penguins, rapid alternating shots of the penguins and the jaws of the seal create suspense and tell the story of the kill, and the rhythm makes the action all the more intense.

For underwater shots, a penguin-cam (camera attached to the penguin) is used to capture the action of feeding