THE PENGUIN LESSONS Reviewed by GREG KING
Director: Peter Cattaneo
Stars: Steve Coogan, Jonathan Pryce, Bjorn Gustafsson, Vivian El Jaber, Alfonsina Carrocio, Diego Herrera.
No, this is not a documentary about the consequences of Donald Trump’s reckless and unnecessary 10% tariffs imposed on Heard and Mcdonald Islands, largely uninhabited islands near Antarctica populated by a colony of penguins. Rather this is a feel-good film based on the experiences of Tom Michell, a British teacher who taught English at an elite boarding school for privileged boys in Argentina for a couple of years in the mid-70s, and how an encounter with a penguin changed his life.
When he first arrived at St George’s School in Buenos Ares, Michell (played here by Steve Coogan) was somewhat cynical and jaded and less than impressed by the apathetic attitude of his students. Soon afterwards the school was temporarily closed and the teachers sent on a week’s leave. Michell went to the Punta del Este resort in Ecuador and reluctantly agreed to let his colleague Tapio (Bjorn Gustafsson) tag along. But Tapio was something of a strait-laced bore while Michell just wanted to have fun.
One night at a nightclub he danced with a woman. Walking her home along the beach they stumbled upon hundreds of penguins washed ashore, covered in tar from an oil spill. One of the penguins was still alive. They took it to Michell’s hotel room and cleaned it up. But his attempts to return it to the ocean were thwarted as the penguin became attached to Michell and followed him everywhere.
When returning to Argentina Michell was accompanied by the penguin, who he named Juan Salvador, after the Spanish version of the iconic Jonathan Livingston Seagull. He was allowed to take it through customs, and then smuggled it into his quarters in violation of the school’s strict “no pets” policy.
But then he found, to his surprise, that his bored students responded to Juan, and their interest in his poetry lessons improved. And Michell found he connected to them and his attitude towards those around him also changed for the better. This included his prickly relationship with the school’s elderly cleaner and cook Maria (veteran Argentinian actor Vivian El Jaber) and her outspoken daughter Sofia (Alfonsina Carrocio). Juan wins over the hearts of everyone it meets at the school.
The Penguin Lessons has been adapted from Michell’s 2015 memoir about his experiences. Writer Jeff Pope (Philomena, etc) and director Peter Cattaneo (The Full Monty, etc) also touch upon the darker side of Argentina under a repressive military rule. People who had espoused anti-government sentiments or were critical of the regime were snatched off the streets by the security forces and detained. Some 30,000 people were killed or forcibly detained during the period of the military rule.
Cattaneo manages to balance the playful humour and the more human elements of the story into a nice and effective mix without becoming overly sentimental. And the film’s key themes of courage and standing up against injustice resonates. And there is a touch of Dead Poets Society in the way that Michell ultimately uses poetry to inspire his students.
Isona Rigau’s production design for the interiors of the school and Michell’s quarters is good. Spanish cinematographer Xavi Gimenez (The Machinist, etc) has done a good job with visuals. Although much of the film was shot in Spain he gives the locations the look and feel of Argentina. Over the end credits we see some super 8 footage of the penguin swimming in the school’s pool as shot by Michell himself. The scene is recreated during the film.
Coogan is perfectly cast as the initially aloof Michell, whose attitude and demeanour is changed by his interactions with the penguin and he brings a certain charm and droll humour to his performance. Jonathan Pryce brings gravitas to his role as Buckle, the school’s stern and humourless headmaster who tries to avoid making waves in the tense political environment. El Jaber brings warmth to her role as Maria. Juan the penguin (played by real life penguins Baba and Richard) is a scene stealer with its antics and winning personality.
★★★☆
