MR. POPPER'S PENQUINS

title: MR. POPPER'S PENGUINS
year: 2011
cast: Jim Carrey
rating: ***

As the weekend’s market is cornered by GREEN LANTERN and residual viewings of SUPER 8 and X-MEN: FIRST CLASS, this one slips under the radar, looking like an awful Jim Carrey vehicle about a corporate buyer named Popper who inherits penguins, keeping them in his New York City apartment. But it’s actually pretty good. Carrey, who's slowed down in the physical comedy department, is quick enough with put-upon reactions, delivered in droves since the penguins, left by his world-travelling father, are a lots of trouble. Computer-animated, they look quite real, although their humanized mannerisms are completely unbelievable. So to survive this mild-mannered romp both kids and adults can enjoy, you have to suspend disbelief from the start. The antagonist, a zoo keeper with shady intentions, is a reminder that something will go wrong. But it’s the penguins, and their turning Carrey’s apartment into a chilly shambles, that’s the most fun. And side characters including his quirky British secretary who uses the word “P” at least three times per sentence, a pretty ex-wife, and his two children (a happy young boy and a depressed teen girl)… the latter Popper’s reason to keep the penguins in the first place… are reminiscent of an old-school happy-go-lucky kid’s flick And a short featuring ICE AGE’s Scrat (the squirrel), and his unrelenting quest for an acorn causing global alterations, is a nice plus.