Is "March of the Penguins" Appropriate for a Child?

Definitely! And you'll love it too. I took my 3 year old son and 10 year old nephew. And despite some of the sadness in it, the narrator doesn't talk about death, there aren't grisly images. It's a beautiful movie. I think it would be perfect for a 7 year old. Email me if you want any more info (____@____.com).

I tried to take my 4 year-old daughter, thinking it would be a great family movie. It wasn't, at least for her. We left about about 30 minutes. It's truly a documentary, not a story, and depicts penguins dying, mating, etc. If you're looking for an educational experience, you might like this. But if you're looking for something entertaining, you'll be disappointed.

Cathy,

I have seen this film and wouldn't take a very young child to see it.

7 years old may be alright though, but you have to be aware of some scenes that I found difficult to handle.

The cruelty that goes hand in hand with life in the wilderness such as death of baby penguins, accidents, predatory attacks and the distress of mother penguins when they lose their babies can be very shocking. There is also a mating scene.

Still, it's an amazing, beautiful, wonderful movie worth watching.

By the way, are you the Cathy I have met recently at the Kindermusik class?

F.

We took our 11, 7, and 5 year old children to see March of the Penguins. They enjoyed it immensely. They still talk about how much they loved the film.

It is a true documentary, and as such, does deal with the perils of the penguin's life cycle, but it does so in a non-graphic, non-brutal way. It uses very gentle language to describe when a penguin passes on. It's very important to keep true to the miraculous story of the penguin to show how dangerous their life is, and how much they go through just to nurture one egg and raise one chick.

I highly recommend the movie. I do not think you will regret taking your child.

My 5 yr old son enjoyed it. There were a few parts with long silence where he lost interest. His favortie part was when the babies were born. It does, however, show that some of the babies don't survive and he didn't like that part. He asked a lot of questions on the ride home.

I took my 7 yr old twins. They thought it was a little scary and depressing (as did my 10 year old), as well as somewhat boring. They had been excited about going, but I'm afraid it was 3 thumbs down. Too much death.

Hope that helps,
Michel

It is good, but you should know that natural elements of the life cycle happen to the penguins. It shows one running from and eventually in the jaws of a sea lion. Some freeze to death (both adults and babies) on the ice. Some children are more sensitive than others, so I thought you should know this. There was a little girl in front of us who was VERY concerned about the penguins ("Did he die, mommy?") and eventually cried. Might work better if you talked beforehand about the fact that these things are going to happen so that your child is prepared.

I think it depends on the child. We went to go see it last week with my 10 year old. He really enjoyed the movie, but was still somewhat bothered by the facts of life and death that are presented. It's a very well done movie, but you get so caught up in the Penguins lives that you mourn with them for the loss of an egg or chick. And as it is a documentary, that side is presented. I guess it depends on how well your child deals with the concept of death and the fact that it happens in nature no matter what species you are.

Last thing - I don't think it will bother the children at all, but there is a love scene in there between two penguins that almost puts most Hollywood love scenes to shame. Very tastful, you won't have to answer any questions from the kids.

cathy,
my bookkeeper saw it and loved it. she is a middle aged darling catholic woman with a great sense of humor & a sense of the good in life.
she said that lots of the older kids (9-12) were complaining when they went in that it was a baby's movie and that many adults were like,'well, at least i'll get a nap'. yet, upon exiting, the majority of the overheard remarks were about how good it was, not what they'd thought, really cute, even my dad liked it.
my kids always got upset if animals were hurt in movies ans discovery channel docs, mama lion dies, cubs killed, were so upsetting they had to stop watching. shw said that was not a problem in this movie and she thinks everyone would liek it.
have fun
S.

Ok, my nephew saw it, he is 8 years old. When we asked him if he liked it, his response was "It was full of facts". This lead me to believe that he was bored with it. Also, he said that a penguin died in the movie. I cannot remember how it died, but I wish the filmmakers would not put 'death' in a rated G movie.

-H. G
Richardson