My Penguin Friend is a sweet human/animal friendship story, perfect for the whole family. Based on a real events, it stars Jean Reno (Da Five Bloods, Léon: The Professional) as João, a father whose grief over his child’s death takes all the happiness from his life. Even many years later, he is a curmudgeonly fisherman in his small Brazilian village who is unwilling to interact with his neighbors. But when he discovers an oil covered penguin in the water one day, it changes everything. Sure, it is pretty much predetermined that they will bond and it will lift his depression, but watching it happen is worth the time!
His wife Maria (Adriana Barraza) is initially unsure that she wants to share her clean house with the little oil-covered creature, but seeing her husband’s heart begin to thaw makes her welcome the little guy. A little girl in the village names him DinDim (pronounced Jin-Jin), a mispronunciation of the Portuguese “pinguim,” and the little waddler is soon a regular member of the whole community. But when DinDim suddenly disappears, João is heartbroken.
Turns out DinDim has just gone back to his home in Patagonia where we first met him. But then the yearly migration begins again, and instead of sticking with his fellow penguins, he makes the VERY long voyage back to João. And for six years, he does the same thing. His story reaches some marine biologists who want to study him, and also a journalist who wants to tell the story of this human/penguin friendship. And he becomes an international celebrity. And João becomes a happy man again.
It helps that DinDim is so darn cute. The filmmakers chose to film with real penguins instead of CGI, using a group of rescued penguins who were not able to safely return to the ocean. And their interactions with Reno are incredibly sweet. I’m quite sure he enjoyed this shoot!
My Penguin Friend is a heartfelt story that will appeal to young and old. Kids (and their parents) will love the little fellow with a big personality, and adults will feel the father’s grief and renewed joy as his relationship with DinDim evolves. Try and see it while it is in a theater. The cinematography, particularly with the penguin colony, is gorgeous.
In theaters now.