Penguins: Spy in the Huddle (TV Mini Series 2013) Poster

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9/10
Penguins - Spy in the Huddle Review, Reveals Journey of Cute Penguins
lzhonng13 June 2023
Warning: Spoilers
Penguins - Spy in the Huddle Review, Reveals Journey of Cute Penguins

3rd Jan 2023 John Downer's documentary "Penguins - Spy in the Huddle" , Using subtle methods to reveals the the true character of penguins.

IMDB, 8.3/10 Douban, 9.7/10 Rotten Tomatos, N/A Youtube, 1.3Mviews, 9Klikes Bilibili, 2.13Mviews, 13Klikes, Story continues below

Penguins - Spy in the huddle is directed by John Downer, and narrated by Davie Tennant and Peter Drost. The director John Downer is an experienced director which directed many other spy series BBC documentaries including Elephants, Spy in the Herd, Tiger, Spy in the Jungle, and Polar Bears, Spy on the Ice.

The documentary is mainly filming the actions and undiscovered habits of the Humboldt Penguin, Rockhopper Penguin and Emperor Penguin.

In the first episode, emperor penguins navigate over a perilous freezing sea to get to their mating sites. Rockhopper Penguins jumping across the world's roughest waters. Humboldt penguins fighting through the desert reaching for their nests. For baby penguins to have a good environment to hatch.

In the second episode, newborn emperor penguins are learning to walk. Rockhopper chicks are watching their predatory neighbour. Humboldt babies try to fight gulls and seals.

Finally, the third episode focuses on the development of the newborn penguins. As they get more independent, all of the chicks leave the ocean and venture onto land, where they run across threats, hostile predators, landforms, and weather.

The camera designs are very unique, 50 spycams were placed in fake penguin bodies and penguin eggs. So filming amount and quality of the actions and habits of penguins can be preferably improved.

Unlike many other outstanding documentaries recording heavy issues, the tone of content in the movie is relaxing and enjoyable. Not so heavy but more pleasant in content. Whether it is the emperor penguin walking alone in the blizzard, the Humboldt penguin bravely shuttled among the sea lions, or those little lives that were almost taken away by natural enemies, most of them survived the danger.

Combined with relaxing music and voice acting, it's perfect for watching during stressful times. The cute penguin can release most of the stress.

The tone of voice is formal, relaxing and neutral. The three episodes of the documentary are mostly objective, and the movie is mostly an informative piece. The mode of the documentary is expository, informing the content and related knowledge of the documentary. The idea and opinion of this movie is mainly informing penguins knowledge and make people more happy.

The advantage of this movie is the relaxing style of information and enjoyable light content that can be watched by little kids. A slight problem is the depth of the movie, but with relaxing and enjoyable content, the problem can be mostly ignored.

The movie expresses the creators idea of relax and pleasant to the audience, the words are in third perspective as an informer to the audience.

In conclusion, the documentary Penguin - Spy in the huddle is a great documentary for an easy and pleasant experience. If the depth of the movie is deeper, the movie will be even more worth watching.

Average score, 9/10, well worth seeing.

Other Informations, Format, HD Producer, Matthew Gordon Directed by, John Downer First air date, Monday 11th Feb, 2013 Organization, JDP, BBC and Discovery Produced by, Philip Dalton True face of the penguin!!!
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10/10
Brilliant
rstalbans-211 March 2013
Great photography; really enjoyed the use of penguin-cam, egg-cam, rock-cam etc.

Narration was wonderful - the best of Mr. Tennant and his natural voice.

Altogether wonderful documentary following the life cycle of three distinct penguin types, including one that breeds in a desert!

Not to be missed.

Only wish the BBC had made more episodes. Don't know what they would have covered, only know they would have been just as good. My kids (6 and 8) really, really enjoyed this show, too.
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10/10
Penguin heaven
TheLittleSongbird19 October 2018
Really like to love all of the 22 BBC 'Wildlife Specials', 18 of which narrated by David Attenborough and the others by David Tennant. Have a preference for Attenborough's contributions, being a big fan of his, but the Wildlife Specials narrated by Tennant have all the qualities that made Attenborough's so great.

As far as the BBC Wildlife Specials go, 'Penguins: Spy in the Huddle' is one of my favourites. It is though my personal favourite of the 'Wildlife Specials: The Spy Collection' series, and for me the best of the Tennant-narrated entries (my least favourite being 'Swarm: Nature's Incredible Invasions' but that is still very good, just that the others focus on animals that appeal to me more).

Did criticise a few of the Wildlife Specials for being too short and not having enough episodes with so much to cover. Didn't feel that way with 'Penguins: Spy in the Huddle'. Maybe there is a bias due for my adoration of penguins, stemming way back to watching 'Pingu' over and over as a child.

'Penguins: Spy in the Huddle' has a huge amount to love. It looks wonderful, beautiful scenery that are like characters of their own and for the quite unique techniques used (done wrong it could have looked really amateurish) the camera work was fluid and natural, not quite cinematic but intimate and clever making us feel like an invisible presence amongst the penguins.

Music score fits very well, not too grandiose or too inappropriately quirky. It is better than a couple of the Attenborough documentaries (though elsewhere all of those are superior) at not being too intrusive and not featuring too much.

From start to finish, 'Penguins: Spy in the Huddle' is interesting and does very well at entertaining and teaching, not everything is new but there is a good balance of the familiar and not so familiar and the information is to the point and not too speculative or overly-subjective. Also excels at not falling into the trap of telling too much of a story approach, this worked with Attenborough because there was still lots that educated and were backed up, but haven't seen it done as successfully elsewhere. The different types of penguins are diverse and are at points strikingly human, their curiosity, intelligence, adapting and struggles being relatable and great to watch. They are more than just cute, they also have vulnerability and resourcefulness and it shows on screen in all their stages, whether in the playful, intimate or more suspenseful scenes.

David Tennant's narration is simply splendid. He delivers with enthusiasm and sincerity, making one want to know more while never talking down to the viewer. The series never felt too episodic and there is a real sense of a story being told with a real honesty and animals worth relating to without going overboard, not getting too humanised or overly-subjective.

To conclude, really wonderful and a must watch. Not the quintessential documentary on penguins, having to compete with the more emotional and ground-breaking Attenborough contributions that had some iconic scenes, but very close. 10/10 Bethany Cox
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10/10
Must watch
prabhjyotsingh-6178531 January 2022
Absolutely adorable coverage of penguins. A must watch for all animal lovers. Very educational and touches upon the intricate details of emotional range in mother penguins.
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10/10
Absolutely Entertaining and Educational
nytesoul12 February 2019
I just loved this documentary! The penguin cams are amazing in that they are so effective, as well as durable. I've alway thought penguins were so fun to watch and this show was just fascinating to me. I keep it in my favorites on Netflix and it has been there for more than 3 years!
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