The Penguin Lessons is a film due to release in the States this upcoming weekend that was adapted by Jeff Pope from Tim Michell’s 2016 memoir. The film stars Steve Coogan & Jonathan Pryce. Coogan stars as Michell, a British teacher who takes a job in Argentina in 1976, and finds his life transformed when he rescues an orphaned penguin from the beach.

I honestly did not expect to watch this. Films involving animals feel like they have been overdone so much at this point. When a screening came up that I wasn’t going to attend due to traveling, I was then presented with the opportunity to screen it digitally. I do try to watch anything and everything, because you just never what’s going to be good or bad. I’m thrilled I watched this one. It has its cliches, but it stands out in the genre, tackling some rather dark themes I never could have ever imagined.

Within the first twenty minutes, the film’s tone feels like it’s going back in time to a time where the types of films don’t get made anymore. I’d say it falls somewhere in the 80’s & 90’s of feel-good films. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, I guess you just had to be there. While that does sound ideal for a feel good story, it gets redundant fast. Characters act in ways I don’t feel like were fitting and I especially didn’t care much about the boys in the classroom. I watched, because I wanted to see the penguin. When the penguin hits the screen, the film gets better and better from there.

I was quite surprised just how dark the film could get, and that’s due to how it approaches the reality of its time. When Michell travels to an unknown territory, there is a lot going around him politically that is not just out of his control, but could also lead to his downfall at any moment. As we learn more as to why he traveled here, it makes sense why he took the risk, but when his life starts to turn around due to rescuing a penguin, that’s when he has to face reality, resulting in some very unique situations.

The way he finds the penguin shows the dangers of oil spills. Due to a short fling he has with someone, he is forced into taking care of the penguin. I wasn’t a big fan of this fling as it was super convenient. She forces him into taking the penguin in, only to reveal that she is married, and then she’s never shown again! Honestly, I thought she would return saying her husband died or something. At least that would tie into Michell’s character. I am not sure how true the film is to real life. It would have been nice to see more of the female character though.

When the film approaches the ongoing violence in the country at the time, it had the thrills I haven’t felt since I was a young kid. Tonally, it does get better, but it’s also something that is rarely made anymore. It forces Steve Coogan into being more vulnerable with his performance as his character really has to deal with his consequences. It’s not just that he is helping the penguin, the penguin is also helping him become a better person, which is something the film accomplishes beautifully.

By the film reaches its conclusion, it sort of falls back into cliches that seriously made me question the reality of certain things happening. Yet, the ending is still fitting. There are texts at the end to tell you what happened to Michell, but I also think the film could have done more to show how he is making an impact to those around him.

That results in another problem has, which is with the runtime. The 110 minute runtime may seem daunting. I know I was questioning the runtime. The film could have done more to get to the penguin sooner to help heighten the importance of this character. While I didn’t care much about the story involving the boys, I often forgot they were a part of the story. When the penguin enters, they become more of an afterthought. I think the film could have focused more on the relationship between the boys and the penguin. That would have also helped show how Michell is becoming a better person. The film doesn’t always quite know if it wants to truly be about Michell being a good teacher or a good person. Both approaches are fine, but when you also add a lot of context in the film, it can be hard to identify what exactly to take away from the film.

Overall, The Penguin Lessons is a delightful surprise that manages to get better and better over time. Steve Coogan delivers an incredible performance unlike anything else I have seen from him. The film has its cliches, but the emotional heartstrings it pulls on makes up for it. This is one of the better animal stories I have seen in recent years.

VERDICT: 3.5/5 (Pretty Good)