Farce of the Penguins (2007)

Too bad they don't have a "no star" vote. This movie is that bad. I watched "March of the Penguins" on video with a group of friends, and the ad lib comments made by our group were funnier than any of those made in this "Farce" version.Not only is this film not funny, it is not even interesting. The clips they use are a mishmash of penguins from various parts of the world - few of which match the dialog that accompanies them. The dialog is lame, and not funny in the least.I cannot give a review the entire movie, as I had to leave the room 30 minutes in. (And only made it the first half hour to be kind to our host that night). When I returned near the end, I learned that it became even more mind-numbingly boring through the endless repetition of both images and bad jokes.

Being that I am a big fan of La Marche de l'empereur, I gave this a shot. I expected juvenile sex jokes, but was really surprised by the scatological humor.I like Lewis Black and enjoyed his penguin, but that was about it. It just seemed like the same jokes over and over - eating, farting and sex. It really got a little tiresome.The music for the movie was a little schmaltzy, like a Celine Dion concert, and was more of a distraction. But, I guess that was the whole point: to create a farce about a work of art.Why can't they just try to create a work of art themselves, rather than make a joke about something beautiful?

There is this notion out there that Bob Saget is actually a funny guy when not playing a TV dad or hawking home video footage. It's not true. Yeah, okay, it's a bit of a kick to imagine the dad from Full House doing blue humor, but beyond that, he has no comic instinct. The gags in this sad apology for a film are adolescent in the worst way. I can only assume that all the names involved in this disaster owe Saget something, or he has some dirt on them, because they can't possibly be serious about this one. It's a one-gag movie and a poor send-up of a film that was overly precious in the first place. The most farcical thing about this film is the fact that it was ever made in the first place.

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.