March Of The Penguins

Filmed over the course of more than a year in one of the most inhospitable places on Earth, March Of The Penguins is an enchanting documentary revealing the incredible spirit and courage of the emperor penguin.

Director Luc Jacquet and cameramen Jerome Maison and Laurent Chalet ventured to Antarctica, braving blizzards and freezing 100mph catabatic winds to photograph these remarkable birds in their natural environment.

The story begins in February, the end of the Antarctic summer. Huge schools of penguins congregate and eventually leap out of the water and on to the ice floes.

The birds then start marching inland - a mesmerising caravan of black and white, some waddling, others sliding on their stomachs to conserve energy - bound for the archipelago that has been the mating ground for centuries.

Arriving at the mating ground, the birds seek out their perfect partners.

At the end of May, each female lays her one and only egg, which has to be carefully and quickly transferred to the male's incubating pocket to prevent the egg freezing on the ice.

While the males keep the eggs warm, the female penguins make the arduous trek back to the sea to feed.

Without any food, the male birds brave the elements until the eggs hatch in mid-July, when the females return to take charge of the chick.

The fathers return in August to relieve the mothers of their duty, until the chicks are able to fend for themselves.

But there is always the constant threat of Mother Nature at her most vicious and cruel and natural predators, including leopard seals and hungry birds such as the giant petrel.

In its native France, March Of The Penguins employed actors to provide the voices of the penguins and impose human traits on to the birds.

Thankfully, that particular gimmick has been lost in translation, replaced by Morgan Freeman's succinct and eloquent narration which compliments the stunning cinematography.

Jacquet's film is absolutely breath-taking - a love story like no other about a species of bird that literally sacrifices itself for the sake of propagating the species.

The vast landscapes of Antarctica are a beautiful yet deadly backdrop to this epic drama of life and death.

Many of the birds die during the exhausting walks between the mating ground and the open water. Eggs and chicks perish on the ice, to the obvious distress of the parents.

In one of the most upsetting scenes in the film, a grieving mother tries to steal another egg to replace the one she has lost.

There are brief comic interludes too - penguins slipping over on the ice - and romantic shots of the birds entwined, lost in a swoon.

Alex Wurman's soaring music underscores the heady emotions, reflecting the majesty of the terrain and the birds' monumental exertions.

Make sure you stay for the end credits, for behind-the-scenes footage of the crew on location, capturing the stunning images.