Mr. Forbush and the Penguins

Mr. Forbush and the Penguins
Directed by	Roy Boulting (uncredited) Al Viola Antarctica sequences Arne Sucksdorff
Written by	Anthony Shaffer
Based on	novel by Graham Billing
Produced by	Henry Trettin
Starring	John Hurt Hayley Mills
Cinematography	Edward Scaife
Edited by	Bernard Gribble
Music by	John Addison
Production companies	EMI Films PGL Productions
Distributed by	British Lion Films
Release date	December 1971 (UK)
Running time	101 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Budget	£638,842

Mr. Forbush and the Penguins (also known as Cry of the Penguins) is a 1971 British comedy drama film, directed by Arne Sucksdorff, Alfred Viola and Roy Boulting. It stars John Hurt, Hayley Mills, Dudley Sutton and Tony Britton.

Plot

A brilliant biology student, Richard Forbush (John Hurt), is sent to Antarctica for six months to study a penguin colony. At first he does it mostly to impress a girl he is chasing, Tara (Hayley Mills). He stays in Shackleton's Hut with his only links to the outside world being a two-way radio to contact the navy who occasionally visit to deliver supplies and take his letters and tape recordings to Tara.

He is challenged mentally by skuas preying on the penguins' eggs and chicks and he builds a catapult to try to fight them although he is meant to observe and not interfere with nature. He is reminded of this by his failure to get rid of the skuas.

By the end of his expedition, Forbush is a changed man with a totally new outlook on life.

Cast

• John Hurt as Richard Forbush
• Hayley Mills as Tara St. John Luke
• Dudley Sutton as Starshot
• Tony Britton as George Dewport
• Thorley Walters as Mr. Forbush Sr.
• Judy Campbell as Mrs. Forbush
• Joss Ackland as The Leader
• Nicholas Pennell as Julien
• Avril Angers as Fanny
• Cyril Luckham as Tringham
• Sally Geeson as Jackie
• Brian Oulton as Food-Store Clerk
• John Comer as Police Sergeant
• Hugh Moxey as Lord Cheddar

Production

Development

The film was based on a 1965 novel by Graham Billing, who had worked for the New Zealand Antarctic Division.

The film was a co-production between EMI Films, PGL Productions and British Lion Films. It was part of the initial slate of movies greenlit by Bryan Forbes who had been appointed head of EMI.

Director Al Viola had won awards for his commercials and this would be his feature film debut. The novel was adapted by playwright Anthony Schaffer, doing his first script. Swedish filmmaker Arne Sucksdorff was hired to shoot footage in Antarctica.

Shooting

Filming started 4 November 1969 at Palmer Peninsula in Antarctica.

Making the film was a turbulent experience. Penguin footage shot by Arne Sucksdorff on location in Antarctica did not cut smoothly into scenes involving humans. Roy Boulting of British Lion replaced director Al Viola, and he replaced Susan Fleetwood, the original female lead, with his then-wife, Hayley Mills. John Hurt was angry at this and Bryan Forbes of EMI had to spend an entire evening persuading him not to quit.

Schaffer, the screenwriter, recalled it as "a fairly chaotic movie which had the young John Hurt capering about the Atlantic slinging rocks at Skuas with a Roman balista, in a vain attempt to protect penguins' eggs from their deprivations. I'm not sure that it all added up, though my younger daughter assures me... it's her favourite film of mine." He added that the female lead "was replaced after the first rough assembly and it was the only film I know of in which a stage direction was delivered as spoken dialogue. It didn't matter. No one noticed - which should generally tell you something about the respect accorded the screen writer's craft."

Reception

The Guardian said the film "isn't as bad as we'd been led to believe."

The film failed to recoup its considerable cost.

External links

• Template:IMDB title
• Mr Forbush and the Penguins at the British Film Institute
• Review of film at New York Times
• Review of film at Film Fanatic
• Review of novel at Kirkus