“March of the Penguins 2: The Next Step” Movie Review

    I remember going to see “March of the Penguins” in theaters years ago.  I don’t normally see documentaries in the theater, but this film was different, it looked cute.  Okay, I admit it, I am a sucker for cute films sometimes.  I also find penguins to be rather cute so seeing a documentary on them seemed like it would make for a charming movie going experience.  It indeed was a special film and I remember “March of the Penguins” being one of my favorite movies the year it was released.  I even bought the movie poster for it!

    After more than a decade passed, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that a sequel was set to be released directly to Hulu.  The sequel was once again filmed by French filmmaker Luc Jacquet and he once again delivers breathtaking scenes depicting Mother Nature at it’s cruelest.  Jacquet somehow manages to once again capture the beauty in even the most gruesome creatures and scenarios.

    The first “March of the Penguins” film turned out to be a bit of a cultural phenomenon, aspiring many other documentaries and even parody films like “Farce of the Penguins”.  Honestly, who ever heard of a documentary receiving a sequel?  As a big fan of the first movie, I was excited to check out the sequel.

    “March of the Penguins 2: The Next Step” is about as close to a zoo or aquarium as you can get without leaving your home.  Like it’s predecessor, the film is extremely educational on the subject of emperor penguins through both the narration and the way the film is shot.

    Morgan Freeman returns to narrate the sequel and helps serve as a carry over from the previous documentary.  Freeman is a natural choice for any documentary due to his relaxing and soothing delivery.  Freeman seems to genuinely be invested in the subject matter as well.

    This sequel is currently very well reviewed and sitting at 100% critics score on rotten tomatoes at the moment.  While I would agree the film deserves a positive rating, my only complaint about the film is that it didn’t set itself apart from the first film enough.  At times during the sequel, it felt like I might have just been rewatching the first film.  That being said, the first film was amazing.

Grade: B