The Penguin Lessons Review

Let’s get the cliché out of the way. Animals and children are notorious scene stealers, hence the oft-quoted advice to not act with them. Not that Steve Coogan takes any notice in The Penguin Lessons, where he plays a world-weary teacher who arrives at an English-run boarding school for boys in mid-70s Argentina and unexpectedly finds himself befriending a penguin. Given the popularity of the birds, you sense director Peter Cattaneo knows he’s on to a winner right from the start.

Argentina is in the throes of revolution when Tom Michell (Coogan) arrives to teach the combined joys of English and rugby. But the constant turmoil in the streets temporarily closes the school so Michell takes a break in nearby Uruguay, where he tries to impress an attractive woman by rescuing a penguin smothered in crude oil. She approves of what he does, but doesn’t stick around and, when he returns to the school, it’s with his devoted black and white companion. Attempts to keep the bird a secret are fruitless, so Michell uses it in his lessons, but also finds his silent friend a surprising help in confronting deep-seated personal issues which have plagued him for years. Pompous head teacher Buckle (Jonathan Pryce) confides in the bird as well, as does housekeeper Maria (Vivian El Jaber) whose daughter is a suspected communist. His feathered form of therapy is irresistible – and it works.

Before you find yourself exclaiming “Penguin! My penguin!”, this isn’t a web-footed Dead Poets Society. There’s something else going on here, in the familiar warm-hearted style that goes with the double act of Coogan and regular collaborator, writer Jeff Pope. Add The Full Monty’s Cattaneo, and you know you’re in for a feelgood experience, one that guarantees there won’t be a dry eye in the house when the credits roll. There’s nothing wrong with that, but the sense of something missing is unavoidable as your reach for your tissues. The film is based on Tom Michell’s memoir of the same name, set against the country’s military coup of 1976, which started a seven year dictatorship and a crack-down on left-wing sympathisers. And, while we know we’re watching Michell’s experiences of the upheaval and violence, it feels as if the narrative is taking Buckle’s advice to treat politics as if it had a “small p” a little too literally. It’s politics lite, so that when we’re told at the end that 30,000 people were killed or disappeared under the military, it sits awkwardly with the film’s optimistic tone.

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To its credit, while the film tip toes round the edges of sentimentality, it fights shy of diving in headfirst. This is, essentially, a shaggy penguin story, with Juan Salvador as he’s named giving Michell the means to confront his own personal problems and re-discover some courage and dignity. It’s a role tailor made for Coogan, playing to his love of irony but also allowing him to remind us of his more emotional side. He and his penguin buddy are an endearing double act, but there’s another early on in the film that provides some satisfying chuckles, and that’s the awkward attempt at a friendship with Scandinavian teacher Tapio (Bjorn Gustafsson) who is constantly stumped by his colleague’s sarcasm.

Comparisons with 2013’s Philomena are inevitable, and there are similarities, but Stephen Frears’ film is in a different league. Its moral issues and indelible outrage give it a power that The Penguin Lessons can only aspire to. But with its warmth, dry humour, self-discovery and, of course, that penguin, this is a genuine crowd pleaser that’s loveable enough for you to happily put its weaknesses to one side and simply enjoy the ride.