Inspired by a true story; an enchanting adventure about a lost penguin rescued from an oil spill, who transforms the life of a heartbroken fisherman. They soon become unlikely friends, so bonded that even the vast ocean cannot divide them. (from IMDB)

My Penguin Friend is a modest little indie film with quality and artful production elements. The movie is based on a true story of a man in Brazil who rescues a wild penguin, nurses it back to health, and finds it to be a special friend for himself and even the people in his village. French actor Jean Reno (the first Mission: Impossible movie, the Steve Martin Pink Panther films) plays the main character, Joao, and gives a solid performance that makes this humble little movie work.

When My Penguin Friend opens, the story follows a young Brazilian boy named Miguel on the eve of his birthday as he receives a gift from a young girl in his village. The next sequence takes place early in the morning of his birthday, as he begs his fisherman father to take him out on the water with him in his small row boat. As a storm looms, the father suggests turning back, but Miguel pushes to stay out. The storm suddenly rocks their boat, sending Miguel overboard where he accidentally hits his head on the underside of the boat and sinks under the water. The scene transitions to the father, now older and played by Reno, in a row boat alone on the sea. The film then cuts quietly to a colony of penguins as they leave their nests to migrate through the water. A lone penguin is soon singled out, so we know just who our titular "penguin friend" will be, as he finds himself separated from the colony and in trouble. A visibly weary and broken Joao then finds the lifeless body of the penguin floating in the waterline of the beach, and he proceeds to clean up the little guy and help him build up his strength before being released back into the wild. It really isn't until Joao and the penguin connect that the movie comes to life. To be honest, the opening of the film threw me a bit, because it seemed like Miguel was the main character, and I wasn't seeing how this had much to do with a penguin. Then, after his death, it feels more like a nature documentary when we are introduced to the penguin colony, especially since it's kind of unclear at first what we're supposed to be focusing on. I felt, pretty quickly, that a voiceover from Jean Reno telling his backstory with Miguel, and then a little knowledge about the penguin migration, could have really pulled it all together better, and had us connecting with Joao immediately.

But as the little penguin becomes part of the family and wins the heart of the village, he's given the name DinDim by a young girl, and it makes the little guy feel all that more engaging. Director David Schurmann even gives us a literal bird's-eye-view from DinDim's perspective at times, showing us life from a penguin's first-person perspective. It's interesting, and he doesn't overuse it, and I felt it kind of added a little extra to us becoming part of DinDim's journey.

The movie is about as squeaky clean as movies can come these days. There's no profanity or even harsh speaking. There is no sexual content. And there isn't even any violence between people or animals. However, it's Miguel's tragic death that earns this movie a PG rating, as it is a shocking turn of events. I can imagine many viewers will be surprised at such a dark turn for the story so early on. I get that it's present to show a more rounded view of Joao as a person and character, but that doesn't make it any easier to witness. I'd imagine that the scene, although without blood or anything graphic shown, could still be disturbing or unsettling to especially young viewers (particularly because it's a child who dies by drowning), so I would definitely keep that in mind before deciding to sit down with the family to watch this one. The only other visual content some might consider gruesome would be when the camera focuses on a fisherman cutting open fish at two different times, briefly showing us the fish's gooey, rotten guts. (I found it pretty gross myself.)

Otherwise, My Penguin Friend is a pretty heartwarming story. There is a little tension when some scientists want to take and study DinDim, and then the little penguin has a dangerous solo journey across rough terrain at one point (and Joao fears the worst), but everything else is pretty sweet and upbeat. It also adds to the film that a real penguin was used throughout the movie. Where some modern films opt for computer animation to accomplish all the things they want to do with an animal, this movie uses a real penguin in almost every scene, which makes it feel that much more real and tangible. There are a couple moments where it's obvious a digital version of a penguin was used for dangerous sequences, but given the perilous nature of such moments, it's entirely understandable why they chose that route.

If you love penguins or stories based on true events, My Penguin Friend is right up your alley. It's cute, sweet, and heartwarming. There are certainly some tough, emotional moments (especially with the unexpected death of a child in the beginning), but knowing that ahead of time can possibly prepare some viewers a little better for it. If you're not patient enough to watch a slow-moving, mostly serene drama, then My Penguin Friend is one you'll want to skip, but for everyone else, My Penguin Friend is an enjoyable little film.

- John DiBiase (reviewed: 10/4/24)

My Penguin Friend is available now at digital retailers. The 4K presentation is really impressive, and it adds to how the detail, clarity, and color translate to screen. With so much of the movie being shot on location, the nature footage looks truly beautiful in 4K.

The "Fandango At Home" digital copy comes with two little bonus features:

A Global Story (3:16) - This one talks about My Penguin Friend being a true story, and how it was filmed on location.

A Penguin POV (2:01) focuses on working with several different penguins to round out the personality of DinDim, and how each penguin they used was good at doing something different.

- John DiBiase (reviewed: 10/4/24)