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{{Infobox film
{{unreferenced|date=May 2008}}
| name = The Pebble and the Penguin
{{Infobox_Film
| name = The Pebble and the Penguin | image = PEBBLE.JPG
| image = PEBBLE.JPG| | caption = Theatrical release poster
| director = ] <small>(uncredited)</small><br />] <small>(uncredited)</small>
| caption = Family Fun Edition DVD
| producer = Russell Boland<br />Don Bluth <small>(uncredited)</small><br />Gary Goldman <small>(uncredited)</small><br />] <small>(uncredited)</small>
| director = ]
| producer = ] | screenplay = Rachel Koretsky<br />Steven Whitestone
| writers = ] <br /> ] | narrator = ]
| starring = {{Plainlist|
| starring = ] <br /> ] <br/> ] <br/> ] <br /> ] <br/> ]
* ]
| music = ] <br/> ] <br/>
* ]
| distributor = ] <br/> ] <br/> ]
* ]
| released = April 14, 1995
* ]}}
| music = ] (songs)<br />] (score)
| editing = Fiona Trayler<br />Aran O'Reilly
| studio = ]<br />]
| distributor = ] (United States and Canada)<br />] (International)
| released = {{Film date|1995|4|12|United States|ref1=<ref name="AFI1">{{cite web |title=The Pebble and the Penguin |url=https://catalog.afi.com/Film/60053-THE-PEBBLEANDTHEPENGUIN?sid=c6b9810f-b79a-4802-8a95-78278101a75c&sr=7.058976&cp=1&pos=0 |website=AFI Catalog of Feature Films |access-date=8 October 2019}}</ref>}}
| runtime = 74 minutes | runtime = 74 minutes
| country = United States<ref name=AFI1 />
| language = English | language = English
| budget = $28,000,000 | budget = $28 million
| gross = $3.9 million<ref name="Boxofficemojo">{{cite web|url=https://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=pebbleandthepenguin.htm|title=The Pebble and the Penguin (1995)|website=]}}</ref>
| gross = $3,983,912
|}} }}
'''''The Pebble and the Penguin''''' is a 1995 American ] ] ]-]<ref name="couldbeatdisney">{{cite news|url=https://nerdist.com/article/secret-of-nimh-don-bluth-retrospective-1982/ |title=How the Secret of Nimh Proved Don Bluth Could Beat Disney |date=June 3, 2022|website=]}}</ref> directed by ] and ]. The film stars the voices of ], ], ], and ]. Based on the true life ] rituals of the ] in ], the film focuses on a timid, stuttering penguin named Hubie who tries to impress a beautiful penguin named Marina by giving her a pebble that fell from the sky and keep her from the clutches of an evil penguin named Drake who wants Marina for himself.
'''''The Pebble and the Penguin''''' is a ] ] ], based on the true life ] rituals of the ] in Antarctica, produced and directed by ] and ]. It was originally released in movie theatres in the USA in 1995 by ] and was released internationally by ]. The film features the voice talents of ], ], ] and ].


Towards the end of production, ] significantly changed the film, forcing Don Bluth and Gary Goldman to leave their film and demand to have their names taken off the film. The two would later start working at ].
==Plot==
Hubie (voiced by ]), a goofy but kindhearted penguin, is in love with the beautiful and kind Marina ( ]). However, he lacks self-confidence and is bullied by the more impressive, but vain and cruel Drake (]). Drake also wants Marina, but for purely vain reasons. After a run in with Drake, Hubie and Marina share a song under the moonlight and their feelings are confirmed for each other. Hubie, however, is luckless in finding a perfect pebble to propose to Marina with. and so wishes on a star to make his dream come true. An emerald falls from the sky next to Hubie. Ecstatic, Hubie rushes to find Marina when Drake tries to steal it and knocks him off the ice, and Hubie is swept away and having to encounter and escape a ].


The film was released in the United States on April 12, 1995, by ],<ref name=AFI1 /> was panned by critics and became a ], grossing only $3.9 million against a $28 million budget. It is the final film to be produced by ] before the studio went bankrupt and ceased operations.
Hubie is picked up and caged by a ship, which is transporting penguins to a zoo. The unfortunate penguins on the ship sing of the misery awaiting them. Hubie meets the streetwise Rocko (]), whose only wishes are to live in sunny climates and learn to fly. After seeing Drake warning Marina of the full moon where she must choose a mate in a dream/vision, Hubie decides to escape. Together, Hubie and Rocko flee, and while laying low in a beach, Hubie convinces Rocko to help him return to Antarctica. They have a short fight (because Hubie had angered Rocko by lying to him) and later run into a hungry and persistent leopard seal (second time for Hubie). They escape the seal, as Rocko had commented Hubie as "amazing", and both sing to the beginning of their friendship (although Rocko was in denial).


== Plot ==
Rocko teaches Hubie how to fight, and run in to their worst aquatic enemy; the orcas. When they tried reaching the home ice, Rocko tries to head-off the orcas while Hubie tries to approach the nearest iceberg, having to lose Rocko in the process. After the chase, he must face his worst enemy, who has captured his love. Hubie gets knocked out, but gains confidence, and he stands and fights Drake once again. Hubie has the upper hand on the second go-round, and with a skillful kick, he sends Drake plummeting to his supposed demise. In surprise, Rocko reappears unharmed to Hubie and Marina. Before Hubie can introduce his friend to Marina, Drake reappears. He throws a large boulder towards the two lovers and Rocko, but it is Drake who meets his demise, by being crushed to death by the entire tower. Rocko saves the couple in danger, and finally gains his ability to fly. Hubie proposes to Marina (who accepts), and Rocko flies. In the end, Rocko teaches Marina and Hubie's children to fly.
In ], the ]s practice a tradition in which during the mating season, the male birds gather on the beaches to find a pebble to use in a mating ritual, and during the night of the full moon mating ceremony, the males propose to the female they love by presenting their pebble to them, and if they accept it, they become a married couple. Hubie, a shy and good-hearted male penguin, loves Marina, the most beautiful penguin in the ] who also seems to like him, but his evil archrival Drake, a muscular penguin who is said to always get his way, similarly covets Marina's affection. One night, Hubie and Marina discuss their feelings for each other, but Hubie is unable to secure a suitable pebble to propose to Marina with. He wishes on a star to make his dream come true, and he receives a beautiful ] cube from the sky. The next morning, Hubie ecstatically rushes to find Marina, but is intercepted by Drake, who demands the emerald. Hubie refuses and Drake throws him into the water. Hubie narrowly escapes from a ] and climbs onto a piece of an iceberg, where he is swept away from Antarctica.


Three days later, Hubie is picked up by ]s and brought aboard a ship en route to a ], and he meets a tough and arrogant ] named Rocko. Through the emerald, Hubie sees Drake attempting to press Marina into his hand in mating by threatening her with expulsion from the rookery if she refuses. Hubie escapes the ship with Rocko and they lay low on a beach. Rocko reluctantly tells Hubie about his desire to fly and live in a tropical climate. Hubie convinces Rocko to join him in his journey back to Antarctica by concocting an imaginary flying penguin named Waldo. Rocko soon discovers Hubie's deception, but recognizes Hubie's will to return to Marina and remains at his side. The pair's friendship is further fortified following an escape from a leopard seal. They are later attacked by a pod of ]s. During the scuffle, Hubie's pebble is lost and Rocko goes missing, leaving Hubie to believe he has perished.
==Production==
] and ] pulled out on producing and directing this movie due to creative differences with the distributor of the film. With a "final cut" clause in the distribution contract, last minute changes were made to film. Bluth and Golman could not convince the distributor to leave the film as they had planned it. As a result, much of the film's special effects could not be completed due to the requested changes and unchanged deadline. Assuming that the changes would hurt the film's integrity, they had their names removed from the film. However, the company name "]" remained above the title. This is the reason they are not credited for directing and producing the project. All of the original animation and about 70% of the color was completed before the two left the project. The changes were accommodated in-house at the company's Dublin studio. Due to the changes much of the ink and paint duties were shared with animation houses in Hungary. Bluth takes no credit for any part of the film.


Hubie manages to locate Drake, and confronts him in a fight before defeating him. As Hubie and Marina reunite, Rocko, who survived the killer whale attack, returns as well, much to Hubie's overjoyment. Just then, however, Drake resurfaces to finish the three off, but his efforts bring about the collapse of his tower and he is crushed beneath the rubble. During the escape, Rocko somehow achieves flight and rescues Hubie and Marina. After bringing them to the ceremony, Rocko reveals to Hubie that he managed to save the pebble and tells him to give it to Marina. Marina accepts Hubie's proposal, stating that she loves him more than the pebble, and the two become mates. Rocko decides to stay in Antarctica and teaches Hubie and Marina's offspring how to fly.
==Release==
The film was first released to ] and ]. The ] was launched in 1999, and a "Family Fun Edition" was released in the United States and Canada on March 27, 2007 by ]. ] supervised the restoration for the "Family Fun Edition", which features color corrections and refielded scenes to add missing effects and correct other errors from the first release.


== Cast and characters ==
==Reception==
* ] as Hubie, a shy and kind-hearted ].
''The Pebble and the Penguin'' has a score of 0% ("poor") at Rotten Tomatoes, with an average rating of 3/10. As the film faced the release of the blockbuster, ]'s '']'', it was a box-office bomb, grossing $3,983,912.. It has a "C+" at ].
* ] as Marina, a beautiful female ].
* ] as Rocko, a grumpy, but streetwise ] with dreams of flying.
* ] as Drake, a vain, cruel and dark-hearted ] who wants Marina to be his mate.
* Alissa King as Petra
* ] as Priscilla and ] 2
* ] as ] and Tika
* ] as Scrawny
* ] as McCallister
* ] as Chubby and ]
* ] as ]
* ] as the narrator
* ] as ] 1
* ] as Megellenic 2
* ] as Gwynne and Chinstrap 3
* Kendall Cunningham as Timmy
* ] as Pola and Chinstrap 1
* ] as Beany
* ] as additional voices<ref name="Maggie Roswell at donbluth.com">{{Cite web |title=Maggie Roswell |url=https://www.maggieroswell.com/ |access-date= |website=Maggie Roswell |language=en-US}}</ref>


==References== == Production ==
=== Conception ===
<references />
''The Animated Movie Guide'' said "considering the artistic and financial success of Disney's '']'', Don Bluth and Gary Goldman decided to cater to the dating crowd, in addition to preschoolers".<ref name="google2">{{cite book |last1=Beck |first1=Jerry |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fTI1yeZd-tkC&pg=PA192 |title=The Animated Movie Guide |publisher=Chicago Review Press |year=2005 |isbn=978-1556525919 |edition=1st |page=192 |access-date=October 19, 2013}}</ref> ''The Pebble and the Penguin'' was produced by Don Bluth Ireland Limited. Production began in November 1991. The working title of the film was ''A Penguin Story''. In 1994, "Bluth spoke enthusiastically of such pending projects as ''The Pebble and the Penguin'' and ''A Troll in Central Park''".<ref>{{cite web |date=April 1, 1994 |title=An Animated reputation Artist blooms in Disney's shadow |url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=ST&s_site=dfw&p_multi=ST&p_theme=realcities&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAF8F735B142EBB&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131020102037/http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=ST&s_site=dfw&p_multi=ST&p_theme=realcities&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAF8F735B142EBB&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM |archive-date=October 20, 2013 |access-date=October 23, 2015 |work=Fort Worth Star-Telegram}}</ref> The film was originally slated for release in summer 1994 (while '']'' was scheduled for November 1993 and '']'' was scheduled for March 1994), but due to some production difficulties (and probably to avoid competition with '']'', '']'', '']'', and '']''), the film's release date was changed to April 1995.<ref>{{cite news|title=Animator sees cartoon features improving|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=nNhRAAAAIBAJ&pg=6781,1777435&dq=pebble-and-the-penguin&hl=en|first=George|last=Anderson|work=]|page=10|date=April 4, 1992|access-date=January 17, 2012}}</ref>


=== Animation and research ===
==External links==
Though Bluth Productions was based in Dublin, artists from Ireland, England and Hungary worked on the project, at least seven directing animators working on the film, among them ].<ref name="sfgate1"/> The penguins in the film are clothed. Humans wearing penguin costumes were filmed and then used as photostat references for the animators.<ref name="google2"/> The iconic quote from Hubie, "Goodness glaciers!" as well as his overall appearance, is a sly reference to Gentleman Glacier, an old Canadian newspaper cartoon used to illustrate snow accumulation each year.{{Citation needed|date=April 2018}} Only two scenes in the film were "augmented by computer animation", one of which being "The Good Ship Misery" song sequence.<ref name="google7027"/> The opening credit and overture sequence has the animated penguin characters playing and dancing on the sheet music for the songs in the film.{{Citation needed|date=September 2015}} According to '']'', the animators researched for the film by "watching documentaries and visiting zoos, such as San Diego's ] and Scotland's ]". The site added that in promotional material, the animators explained they "discovered that the land of snow and ice shines with many different hues".<ref name="google7027"/> ''The Pebble and the Penguin'' is Don Bluth's last feature film to use the traditional hand-painted cel method of animation. Don Bluth's next film, '']'', produced at ], would use a digital method of coloring and combining scanned drawings similar to ]'s ] software, which would eliminate the need for cels, the multiplane camera, and many of the optical effects used for the last time in ''The Pebble and the Penguin''.
*{{imdb title|id=0114108}}

*{{rotten-tomatoes|id=pebble_and_the_penguin}}
=== Production problems ===
*{{mojo title|id=pebble_and_the_penguin|title=The Pebble And The Penguin}}
During a late stage in the production, MGM insisted for numerous changes to be made to the film, such as removing some characters, trimming down some sequences, scenes being cut from the final product, and having the voices be re-recorded. As a result, the animation, in particular the special effects, fell behind and to make sure the movie made it to the deadline, additional coloring had to be done at Reflex Animation Ltd, a Hungarian animation studio. Don Bluth and Gary Goldman were so dissatisfied with the changes MGM was insisting that they left during production (to help set up ]) and demanded to be uncredited as the directors.<ref>{{cite book|title=The A to Z of Animation and Cartoons |first1=Nichola |last1=Dobson |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JVeK2elZxTcC&pg=PA28 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |page=28 |isbn=978-1461664024 |year=2010 |access-date=October 19, 2013}}</ref> The book ''Animated Films'' said, "changes at MGM during production...resulted in the project being affected in terms of production value".<ref>{{cite book |last1=Clarke |first1=James |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B090Ndx1o6cC&pg=PA131 |title=Animated Films - Virgin Film |publisher=Random House |year=2012 |isbn=978-1448132812 |pages=131 |access-date=October 19, 2013}}</ref> In a 2001 edition of his magazine ''Toon Talk'', Bluth admitted: "''Penguin'' had story problems. We knew it. The crew knew it". Though he attempted to fix these issues when his Irish studio got taken over by the Hong Kong company Media Assets, "the story and film were now compromised", so neither he nor Goldman stayed. They had their names removed from the film's credits and accepted an offer by ] – 20th Century Fox's then-president – to set up a new animation studio in the US (which would become Fox Animation Studios). Bluth said to his animation crew, "I can't chew with someone else's mouth".<ref name="google2"/> Despite this executive interference, ''The Animated Movie Guide'' noted MGM/UA producer ]'s comments on the film: "I think it's one of Don's best films ever...There's no issue of our claiming the credit for this. It's his film".<ref name="google2"/>

== Music ==
{{Infobox album
| image =
| name = The Pebble and the Penguin
| type = Soundtrack
| artist = ] and ]
| cover =
| alt =
| released = April 11, 1995
| recorded =
| venue =
| studio =
| genre = ], ]
| length = 46:40
| label = ]
| producer = Barry Manilow
| prev_title =
| prev_year =
| next_title =
| next_year =
}}
The songs were written by ], who previously wrote the songs for ''Thumbelina'', along with longtime collaborator and lyricist ].<ref name="google7027">{{cite web |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=oegyAAAAIBAJ&pg=7027,2759549&dq=the-pebble-and-the-penguin&hl=en |work=The Free-Lance Star |date=April 14, 1995 |access-date=October 23, 2015 |title='Penguin' a flightless bird |author=Sumner, Jane}}</ref> The film's score was composed by ]. Manilow, who had "started off wanting to be a composer", got an opportunity to do this when he was approached to "compose songs and the underscore" for the film and '']''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=ST&s_site=dfw&p_multi=ST&p_theme=realcities&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAF8F7459E7B80D&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM |title=Manilow's new niche Writing 'Thumbelina's score gives the hugely popular guy a crack at his favorite dream |date=April 5, 1994 |access-date=October 23, 2015 |work=Fort Worth Star-Telegram |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131020102025/http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=ST&s_site=dfw&p_multi=ST&p_theme=realcities&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAF8F7459E7B80D&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM |archive-date=October 20, 2013}}</ref> The songs and score for the soundtrack were both performed by the Irish Film Orchestra and the Irish Chamber Choir.<ref name="allmusic">{{Cite web |title=The Pebble & the Penguin - Original Soundtrack |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-pebble-the-penguin-mw0000171860/ |website=]}}</ref> Barbadian singer Geoffrey Holder sang the deleted song "The Beachmaster" for the film.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Méndez-Méndez |first1=Serafin |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NLPrMMKmynwC&pg=PA218 |title=Notable Caribbeans and Caribbean Americans: A Biographical Dictionary |last2=Cueto |first2=Gail |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |year=2003 |isbn=9780313314438 |pages=218 |access-date=October 19, 2013}}</ref>

An accompanying soundtrack was released on April 11, 1995. This soundtrack is currently out of print. The soundtrack includes various artists with actors singing their parts for the film, including ], ], ], and ] among others. The album was given a rating of 2 and a half stars at ]. Reviewer Peter Fawthrop wrote: "Barry Manilow's soundtrack would have upped the mediocrity on a better project, but ''The Pebble and the Penguin'' as a film was conceived with such dismal effort from the then struggling Don Bluth studio that the songs and score work on a somewhat passing level".<ref name="allmusic"/>

The version of "Now and Forever" sung by ] and ] during the film's end credits is not on the soundtrack, but was later put on Barry Manilow's album ''Duets'' and a later reissue of this soundtrack as a bonus track when ] re-acquired the rights to the soundtrack in 2012.<ref name="allmusic" />

=== Songs ===
Original songs performed in the film include:
{{Track listing
| all_writing =
| all_lyrics =
| all_music =
| extra_column = Performer(s)

| title1 = Now and Forever
| extra1 = ] & Chorus
| length1 = 5:19

| title2 = Sometimes I Wonder
| extra2 = ]
| length2 = 4:17

| title3 = The Good Ship Misery
| extra3 = ], ], ] & Chorus
| length3 = 2:37

| title4 = Don't Make Me Laugh
| extra4 = ]
| length4 = 2:07

| title5 = Sometimes I Wonder (Reprise)
| extra5 = ]
| length5 = 2:29

| title6 = Looks Like I Got Me a Friend
| extra6 = ] & ]
| length6 = 3:30
| title7 = Now and Forever (Finale)
| extra7 = Chorus
| length7 = 1:04

| title8 = Now and Forever (End Credits Version)
| extra8 = ] & ]
| length8 = 4:13
}}

== Release ==
=== Theatrical ===
''The Pebble and the Penguin'' was released in the United States and Canada on April 12, 1995. When the film was nearing completion, ] purchased the distribution rights in North America, while ] under its ] label obtained the foreign distribution rights.

=== Marketing ===
The film's tagline was "The adventure of a lifetime begins with one small pebble".<ref name=AllMovie/> Seventy-five readers of the '']'' each won four tickets to the film. The special showing was held at 11 a.m. on April 8 at the Embassy Theater in ].<ref>{{cite news |date=April 6, 1995 |title=Readers win tickets to attend 'The Pebble and the Penguin' |work=] |url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=SAEC&p_theme=saec&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAFE7536FD33107&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM |url-status=dead |access-date=October 19, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131020101252/http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=SAEC&p_theme=saec&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAFE7536FD33107&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM |archive-date=October 20, 2013}}</ref> ''The Pebble and the Penguin'' was cross-promoted with ]'s ].<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Product Forecast|last=Traiman|first=Steve|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yQsEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA97|date=July 29, 1995|magazine=]|page=97|access-date=October 19, 2013}}</ref>

=== ''Driving Mr. Pink'' ===
''The Pebble and the Penguin'' was accompanied in its theater run by a new '']'' short entitled ''Driving Mr. Pink'' in the United States,<ref name="washingtonpost1">{{cite news |last=Hinson |first=Hal |date=April 13, 1995 |title='The Pebble and the Penguin' (G) |newspaper=] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/videos/thepebbleandthepenguinghinson_c010bd.htm |access-date=October 19, 2013}}</ref> which was adapted from an episode of the successful ] (though ''The Pebble and the Penguin'' was accompanied in its theater run by a new '']'' short entitled '']'' internationally). The short was produced and directed by Paul Sabella, and was co-directed by ], who would go on to create '']'' and '']''. The short also featured the character of Voodoo Man from the 1995 TV show.<ref name="google2" /> It is a late one-off short in the Pink Panther short series – they were abundant and popular until 1980.<ref>{{cite book|title=Animated Movies Facts, Figures & Fun |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m2tOrUQTBosC |page=40 |isbn=978-1904332527 |publisher=AAPPL Artists & Photographers Press |year=2006 |access-date=October 19, 2013 |last1=Grant |first1=John}}</ref> The '']'' critic Peter Stack described the short as "loud, obnoxious, idiotic".<ref name="sfgate1">{{cite news |author=Stack |first=Peter |date=April 14, 1995 |title=Penguin Love Melts the Ice in 'Pebble' / Animated film has famous voices |newspaper=SFGate |url=http://www.sfgate.com/movies/article/Penguin-Love-Melts-the-Ice-in-Pebble-Animated-3036923.php |access-date=October 13, 2013}}</ref>

== Reception ==
=== Box office ===
''The Pebble and the Penguin'' did poorly at the box office, grossing a little over $3.9 million against a $28 million budget, mainly because it was overshadowed by '']'' which was released five days earlier.<ref name="Boxofficemojo" /> However, the film became popular among fans and audiences of Bluth's films and later gained a ] through home video releases.<ref>{{cite web |title=Barry Manilow Song Lists |url=https://www.letssingit.com/barry-manilow-72pjk |website=Letssingit |access-date=24 January 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=November 18, 2019 |title=Don't forget your mitts: 10 best animated winter movies, ranked |url=https://screenrant.com/best-animated-winter-movies-ranked/ |access-date=24 January 2022 |website=]}}</ref>

=== Critical reception ===
{{Quote box
| quote = One of animator Don Bluth's lesser efforts, ''The Pebble and the Penguin'' is cute but little more. The primary culprit is the script; aside from the unusual setting and small parcels of information about Emperor penguins, is hackneyed and uninvolving. The decision to focus on the relationship between Hubie and Rocko (while relegating the leading female character to nothing more than a trite damsel-in-distress role) is unfortunate, as the writers bring nothing new to the "buddy" concept and their attempts at humorous dialogue for the pair are often painful. With the exception of a song that pays homage to Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill, the Barry Manilow-Bruce Sussman songs are even worse. Bluth is incapable of creating bad animation, and there are several sequences (especially those taking place underwater) that have moments of beauty; overall, however, the animation doesn't have enough sparkle to breathe life into the movie. The cast is certainly not at fault, with Martin Short doing everything short of bursting through the screen to hold the viewer's attention, Tim Curry turning in a reliably sinister performance, and Annie Golden lending her powerful and unique belt to the little she is given to sing. Penguin is not totally without charm -- but the amount it has could almost be fit into a pebble.
| source = A review of the film by Craig Butler on ], concisely summing up the general consensus among reviews.<ref name=AllMovie>{{cite web|url=https://www.allmovie.com/movie/the-pebble-and-the-penguin-vm429723/review|title=The Pebble and the Penguin (1995) |last=Butler |first=Craig |website=] |access-date=October 19, 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130616092937/http://www.allrovi.com/movies/movie/v134628|archive-date=2013-06-16}}</ref>
| quoted = 1
| width = 20%
| align = right
}}

Upon release, the film was widely panned by critics. On ] the film has a rating of 31% based on 13 reviews, with an average rating of 4/10.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Pebble and the Penguin (1995) |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/pebble_and_the_penguin/|website=Rotten Tomatoes}}</ref> The film was given a Two Thumbs Down rating on '']'', with ] noting that the film's animation looks "cheap and unfinished" and that "none of the songs are memorable"; ] added his dislike of the "dumb songs", "silly story", and the film's ] of its heroes and villains, noting the lighter color scheme of Hubie when compared to Drake.<ref>{{cite episode |title=Kiss of Death/Jury Duty/Stuart Saves His Family/The Basketball Diaries/The Pebble and the Penguin |url=https://siskelebert.org/?p=3272 |last1=Siskel |first1=Gene |last2=Ebert |first2=Roger |date=April 22, 1995 |season=9 |network=] |access-date=May 8, 2023 |series=Siskel & Ebert |series-link=At the Movies (1986 TV program) |number=30}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Ebert |first=Roger |date=June 1, 1995 |title=The Pebble and the Penguin |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=npVGAAAAIBAJ&pg=3807,236089&dq=the-pebble-and-the-penguin&hl=en |access-date=October 23, 2015 |work=The Day |page=29}}</ref> The latter took this a step further by arguing: "What do kids learn from this? Nothing overt. Just a quiet, unstated impression: White is good and brave, and brown is scheming and negative. Reinforce that through lots of cartoons (examples: '']'' and '']'') and no wonder even black children choose white dolls in some psychological experiments".<ref>{{cite web |last=Ebert |first=Roger |date=April 12, 1995 |title=The Pebble And The Penguin |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-pebble-and-the-penguin-1995 |access-date=October 19, 2013 |website=RogerEbert.com}}</ref> The ]-based '']'' said that "the songs are forgettable, the story one-note and the characterizations quite weak".<ref name="deseretnews1">{{cite news|title=Film review: Pebble and the Penguin, The|url=http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700001403/Pebble-and-the-Penguin-The.html|last=Hicks |first=Chris |newspaper=Deseret News|date=April 22, 1995|access-date=October 19, 2013|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121108180646/http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700001403/Pebble-and-the-Penguin-The.html |archive-date=November 8, 2012}}</ref> Louis Black of '']'' said the film "lacks dramatic structure and narrative drive: Songs and animated action pieces are narratively connected but the film doesn't feel as though it is an organic whole. All the elements are here, they just don't come together".<ref name="austinchronicle1995">{{cite news |last=Black |first=Louis |date=April 21, 1995 |title=The Pebble and the Penguin |newspaper=] |url=http://www.austinchronicle.com/calendar/film/1995-04-21/the-pebble-and-the-penguin/ |access-date=October 19, 2013}}</ref> '']'' wrote that "the characterisations are weak and unendearing. Worse, the big 'action' sequences turn up with the pacing and predictability of clock chimes. And, in what is perhaps the last great medium for musicals, the perfunctoriness of Barry Manilow's songs and arrangements seem guaranteed to put off yet another generation".<ref>{{cite web |author= |date=July 23, 2007 |title=The Pebble and the Penguin |url=https://www.timeout.com/london/film/the-pebble-and-the-penguin |access-date=October 19, 2013 |website=]}}</ref> ] of '']'' wrote that four would be "the optimum age for viewers of this gentle, animated musical", adding that "the action seems flat and low-rent compared to those earlier movies", and that it "doesn't have the vivid characters, first-rate animation or sense of adventure that turns movies like '']'' into endlessly watchable favorites".<ref name="nytimes1">{{cite news |last=James |first=Caryn |date=April 12, 1995 |title=FILM REVIEW; A Feathery Fable of Love And Other Mushy Stuff |work=] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/04/12/movies/film-review-a-feathery-fable-of-love-and-other-mushy-stuff.html |access-date=October 19, 2013}}</ref>

'']'' film critic ] wrote that "the banality of the story, the pallid look, the flatness of the characters add up to a product that is, at best, second rate".<ref name="washingtonpost1"/> Peter Stack of the '']'' said that the "gnashing whale scenes are intense enough to push the G-rating envelope".<ref name="sfgate1"/> Dan Webster of '']'' in Spokane wrote that the film "is only an average effort in virtually every respect".<ref name="google1385">{{cite web |last=Webster |first=Dan |date=April 27, 1995 |title=The Pebble and the Penguin |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=8LoyAAAAIBAJ&pg=1385,5251828&dq=the-pebble-and-the-penguin&hl=en |access-date=October 23, 2015 |work=The Spokesman-Review}}</ref> '']'' said "the orchestration is too fancy, too loud and often drowns out the lyrics. This is a kid's movie, but musically it sounds like a full-costume Broadway show with full-supporting chorus line. It's a little disturbing to see a children's movie that perpetuates the erroneous image of killer whales as violent creatures. It is, however, a perfect indication of the limited imagination which went into writing ''The Pebble and the Penguin''".<ref>{{cite news|title=Pebble and the Penguin a pleasant children's film|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/275501217|publisher=Pqasb.pqarchiver.com|date=April 21, 1995|access-date=October 19, 2013|id={{ProQuest|275501217}} }}</ref> Jane Sumner of '']'' said the film got a "charming mating ritual" and turned into "sappy action romance with celebrity voices".<ref name="google7027"/> The book ''Contemporary North American Film Directors'' suggested that the film suffered from containing elements of "the same unimaginative and clichéd Disney of the 1970s that Bluth had been so critical of".<ref>{{cite book|title=Contemporary North American Film Directors: A Wallflower Critical Guide |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ifl0AkO-KeIC&pg=PA54 |page=54 |publisher=Wallflower Press |isbn=978-1903364529 |year=2002 |access-date=October 19, 2013 |last1=Allon |first1=Yoram |last2=Cullen |first2=Del |last3=Patterson |first3=Hannah}}</ref> ''The Animated Movie Guide'' said that "the hero was a stuttering wimp, the songs didn't advance the plot, the dialogue was incessant and superfluous, and the pacing was plodding and dull", and also said the film was an "utter waste of talent and resources", due to interference from external forces.<ref name="google2"/>

Some critics did praise various aspects of the film, particularly in regard to Bluth's animation. These reviews, however, were almost exclusively mixed. ] said that "the background animation of capricious weather conditions is lovely, as are the top-notch original songs by Barry Manilow and Mark Watters".<ref>{{cite web |date=December 3, 2007 |title=The Pebble and the Penguin - Movie Review |url=http://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/the-pebble-and-the-penguin |access-date=October 19, 2013 |website=]}}</ref> The ''Deseret News'' wrote: "Bluth's strength continues to be colorful, classical-style animation, and there are some gorgeous moments here — especially some underwater sequences".<ref name="deseretnews1"/> '']'' wrote: "''The Pebble and the Penguin'' features some beautifully animated sequences The characters are great and the voice talents of Martin Short...and James Belushi...are terrific".<ref name="austinchronicle1995"/> '']'' said the film has a "heartwarming story, some lively songs and professional animation", adding that it is "a sweet, enjoyable romantic tale more likely to succeed as an afternoon diversion on home video than on the big screen".<ref>{{cite magazine |author=Klady |first=Leonard |date=April 10, 1995 |title=The Pebble and the Penguin |url=https://variety.com/1995/film/reviews/the-pebble-and-the-penguin-1200441434/ |magazine=Variety |access-date=October 19, 2013}}</ref> James wrote "the tunes Mr. Manilow has written for the movie are, like his familiar pop standards, bouncy and catchy", and commented that "the animation is fine".<ref name="nytimes1"/> Hinson wrote that "a flourishing opening number—titled 'Here and Now'—proves that Short can belt out a song with the best of them", adding that the "Bluth studio style of animation is passable, and, in the case of a Brecht-Weill flavored production number, occasionally inspired".<ref name="washingtonpost1"/>

Stack described the "show-tune-style songs" as "pleasant but forgettable", adding that "the singing by Short, Belushi, Curry and Broadway belter Golden is the best thing about the film". It also noted that "one of the obvious obstacles was how to color a film whose natural shadings tend toward black, white and degrees of gray. The result is a lot of odd but fascinating colorations -- the sky might turn up yellow at times, or the sea a deep maroon".<ref name="sfgate1"/> Webster wrote: "In an era when G-rated movies are as rare as Hollywood humility, any attempt at family entertainment should be lauded", adding "let us salute Don Bluth and his team of animators".<ref name="google1385"/> In a rare case, '']'' in ] gave the film 4 stars.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=sXchAAAAIBAJ&pg=2808,7684315&dq=the-pebble-and-the-penguin&hl=en |work=The Daily Gazette |title=The Pebble and the Penguin |date=April 29, 1995 |access-date=October 23, 2015}}</ref> Monica Sullivan of ''Movie Magazine International'' noted that the film was "heartily enjoyed by the two little girls who saw it with me at a kiddie matinee".<ref>{{cite web |last=Sullivan |first=Monica |title=MMI Review: The Pebble And The Penguin |url=http://www.shoestring.org/mmi_revs/pebpen.html |access-date=October 19, 2013 |website=Movie Magazine International |via=shoestring.org}}</ref>

=== Awards ===
The 2007 DVD release of ''The Pebble and the Penguin'' was nominated for a ] for "Best Youth DVD" from the ] but was beaten by ] and ]'s '']''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=12th Annual Satellite Awards - New Media |url=http://www.pressacademy.com/satawards/awards2007.shtml |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080122102236/http://www.pressacademy.com/satawards/awards2007.shtml |archive-date=January 22, 2008 |access-date=May 8, 2023 |website=]}}</ref>

{{awards table}}
|-
| 2007
| ''The Pebble and the Penguin''
| Satellite Award for Best Youth DVD
| {{nom}}
|}

== Home media ==
''The Pebble and the Penguin'' was released on ] and ] by ] on August 15, 1995.<ref name="google2"/>

Throughout 1997, songs from the film were released alongside others from the MGM vaults in four MGM Sing-Along cassettes released by MGM/UA Home Video. The loosely themed tapes had titles such as "Searching for Your Dreams", "Having Fun", and "Being Happy".<ref>{{Cite magazine |date=January 11, 1997 |title=Lion's Share of MGM Sing-Alongs |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wQ4EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PT72 |magazine=] |page=77 |access-date=October 19, 2013}}</ref> ''The Pebble and the Penguin'' was first released by MGM Home Entertainment on ] on January 19, 1999.

A "]" of the film was released only in the United States and Canada on March 27, 2007, by ]. Though they were initially unsatisfied with how the film turned out, Don Bluth and ] returned to supervise the restoration for the "Family Fun Edition", which features color corrections, refielded scenes to hide missing effects and correct other errors from the theatrical release.<ref>{{cite web|title=Ask Us Questions|url=http://www.donbluth.com/contactus.cfm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070529080508/http://www.donbluth.com/contactus.cfm|archive-date=May 29, 2007|website=donbluth.com|access-date=October 19, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Film Facts |url=https://sites.google.com/site/thepebbleandthepenguin/home/film-history|access-date=2020-07-07|website=The Pebble and the Penguin Museum}}</ref>

The 2007 DVD release of ''The Pebble and the Penguin'' was, according to ''The Hindu News'', a part of a wave of penguin-related media consisting of '']'', '']'', '']'' and '']''.<ref>{{cite news|title=Penguins galore: Cold-weather fowl rule the waves in animation|url=http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/009200703300941.htm|website=Hindu.com|date=March 30, 2007|access-date=October 19, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20131019181919/http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/009200703300941.htm|archive-date=October 19, 2013}}</ref> This trend was also picked up on by ''The Paramas Post''<ref>{{cite news |last=Hebert |first=James |date=June 16, 2007 |title=Are penguins trying to take over the world or just pop culture? |work=The Paramus Post |url=http://www.paramuspost.com/article.php/20070610223820825 |url-status=dead |access-date=October 19, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070618173653/http://www.paramuspost.com/article.php/20070610223820825 |archive-date=June 18, 2007}}</ref> and '']''.<ref>{{cite news |date=April 2, 2007 |title=Penguins galore |newspaper=theage.com.au |url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/film/penguins-galore/2007/04/02/1175366087087.html |access-date=October 19, 2013}}</ref> In 2010, the film was re-released, along with '']'', as a double-sided DVD, but the print utilized was the un-restored 1999 DVD.<ref>{{cite web |title=Pebble & The Penguin/ Rock-a-Doodle (Two-Pack) |url=https://www.amazon.com/Pebble-The-Penguin-Rock-A-Doodle-Two-Pack/dp/B00402FG8U |access-date=October 23, 2015 |website=Amazon|date=5 October 2010 }}</ref>

The film was released on ] for the first time on October 11, 2011.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Pebble and the Penguin Blu-ray |url=https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/The-Pebble-and-the-Penguin-Blu-ray/28682/ |access-date=October 23, 2015 |website=Blu-ray.com}}</ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Wikiquote}}
* {{IMDb title|114108}}
* '''' at the ]
* {{Mojo title|pebbleandthepenguin}}
* {{Rotten-tomatoes|pebble_and_the_penguin}}


{{Don Bluth}} {{Don Bluth}}
{{Gary Goldman}}
{{Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer theatrical animated features}}
{{Warner Bros. theatrical animated features}}


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Revision as of 16:53, 31 December 2024

1995 American film
The Pebble and the Penguin
Theatrical release poster
Directed byDon Bluth (uncredited)
Gary Goldman (uncredited)
Screenplay byRachel Koretsky
Steven Whitestone
Produced byRussell Boland
Don Bluth (uncredited)
Gary Goldman (uncredited)
John Pomeroy (uncredited)
Starring
Narrated byShani Wallis
Edited byFiona Trayler
Aran O'Reilly
Music byBarry Manilow (songs)
Mark Watters (score)
Production
companies
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures
Don Bluth Limited
Distributed byMGM/UA Distribution Co. (United States and Canada)
Warner Bros. (International)
Release date
  • April 12, 1995 (1995-04-12) (United States)
Running time74 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$28 million
Box office$3.9 million

The Pebble and the Penguin is a 1995 American independent animated musical comedy-adventure film directed by Don Bluth and Gary Goldman. The film stars the voices of Martin Short, Jim Belushi, Tim Curry, and Annie Golden. Based on the true life mating rituals of the Adélie penguins in Antarctica, the film focuses on a timid, stuttering penguin named Hubie who tries to impress a beautiful penguin named Marina by giving her a pebble that fell from the sky and keep her from the clutches of an evil penguin named Drake who wants Marina for himself.

Towards the end of production, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures significantly changed the film, forcing Don Bluth and Gary Goldman to leave their film and demand to have their names taken off the film. The two would later start working at Fox Animation Studios.

The film was released in the United States on April 12, 1995, by MGM/UA Distribution Co., was panned by critics and became a box office bomb, grossing only $3.9 million against a $28 million budget. It is the final film to be produced by Sullivan Bluth Studios before the studio went bankrupt and ceased operations.

Plot

In Antarctica, the Adélie penguins practice a tradition in which during the mating season, the male birds gather on the beaches to find a pebble to use in a mating ritual, and during the night of the full moon mating ceremony, the males propose to the female they love by presenting their pebble to them, and if they accept it, they become a married couple. Hubie, a shy and good-hearted male penguin, loves Marina, the most beautiful penguin in the rookery who also seems to like him, but his evil archrival Drake, a muscular penguin who is said to always get his way, similarly covets Marina's affection. One night, Hubie and Marina discuss their feelings for each other, but Hubie is unable to secure a suitable pebble to propose to Marina with. He wishes on a star to make his dream come true, and he receives a beautiful emerald cube from the sky. The next morning, Hubie ecstatically rushes to find Marina, but is intercepted by Drake, who demands the emerald. Hubie refuses and Drake throws him into the water. Hubie narrowly escapes from a leopard seal and climbs onto a piece of an iceberg, where he is swept away from Antarctica.

Three days later, Hubie is picked up by humans and brought aboard a ship en route to a zoo, and he meets a tough and arrogant Northern rockhopper penguin named Rocko. Through the emerald, Hubie sees Drake attempting to press Marina into his hand in mating by threatening her with expulsion from the rookery if she refuses. Hubie escapes the ship with Rocko and they lay low on a beach. Rocko reluctantly tells Hubie about his desire to fly and live in a tropical climate. Hubie convinces Rocko to join him in his journey back to Antarctica by concocting an imaginary flying penguin named Waldo. Rocko soon discovers Hubie's deception, but recognizes Hubie's will to return to Marina and remains at his side. The pair's friendship is further fortified following an escape from a leopard seal. They are later attacked by a pod of killer whales. During the scuffle, Hubie's pebble is lost and Rocko goes missing, leaving Hubie to believe he has perished.

Hubie manages to locate Drake, and confronts him in a fight before defeating him. As Hubie and Marina reunite, Rocko, who survived the killer whale attack, returns as well, much to Hubie's overjoyment. Just then, however, Drake resurfaces to finish the three off, but his efforts bring about the collapse of his tower and he is crushed beneath the rubble. During the escape, Rocko somehow achieves flight and rescues Hubie and Marina. After bringing them to the ceremony, Rocko reveals to Hubie that he managed to save the pebble and tells him to give it to Marina. Marina accepts Hubie's proposal, stating that she loves him more than the pebble, and the two become mates. Rocko decides to stay in Antarctica and teaches Hubie and Marina's offspring how to fly.

Cast and characters

Production

Conception

The Animated Movie Guide said "considering the artistic and financial success of Disney's Beauty and the Beast, Don Bluth and Gary Goldman decided to cater to the dating crowd, in addition to preschoolers". The Pebble and the Penguin was produced by Don Bluth Ireland Limited. Production began in November 1991. The working title of the film was A Penguin Story. In 1994, "Bluth spoke enthusiastically of such pending projects as The Pebble and the Penguin and A Troll in Central Park". The film was originally slated for release in summer 1994 (while Thumbelina was scheduled for November 1993 and A Troll in Central Park was scheduled for March 1994), but due to some production difficulties (and probably to avoid competition with The Lion King, Baby's Day Out, Speed, and Forrest Gump), the film's release date was changed to April 1995.

Animation and research

Though Bluth Productions was based in Dublin, artists from Ireland, England and Hungary worked on the project, at least seven directing animators working on the film, among them John Pomeroy. The penguins in the film are clothed. Humans wearing penguin costumes were filmed and then used as photostat references for the animators. The iconic quote from Hubie, "Goodness glaciers!" as well as his overall appearance, is a sly reference to Gentleman Glacier, an old Canadian newspaper cartoon used to illustrate snow accumulation each year. Only two scenes in the film were "augmented by computer animation", one of which being "The Good Ship Misery" song sequence. The opening credit and overture sequence has the animated penguin characters playing and dancing on the sheet music for the songs in the film. According to The Free Lance–Star, the animators researched for the film by "watching documentaries and visiting zoos, such as San Diego's SeaWorld and Scotland's Glasgow Zoo". The site added that in promotional material, the animators explained they "discovered that the land of snow and ice shines with many different hues". The Pebble and the Penguin is Don Bluth's last feature film to use the traditional hand-painted cel method of animation. Don Bluth's next film, Anastasia, produced at Fox Animation Studios, would use a digital method of coloring and combining scanned drawings similar to Disney's CAPS software, which would eliminate the need for cels, the multiplane camera, and many of the optical effects used for the last time in The Pebble and the Penguin.

Production problems

During a late stage in the production, MGM insisted for numerous changes to be made to the film, such as removing some characters, trimming down some sequences, scenes being cut from the final product, and having the voices be re-recorded. As a result, the animation, in particular the special effects, fell behind and to make sure the movie made it to the deadline, additional coloring had to be done at Reflex Animation Ltd, a Hungarian animation studio. Don Bluth and Gary Goldman were so dissatisfied with the changes MGM was insisting that they left during production (to help set up Fox Animation Studios) and demanded to be uncredited as the directors. The book Animated Films said, "changes at MGM during production...resulted in the project being affected in terms of production value". In a 2001 edition of his magazine Toon Talk, Bluth admitted: "Penguin had story problems. We knew it. The crew knew it". Though he attempted to fix these issues when his Irish studio got taken over by the Hong Kong company Media Assets, "the story and film were now compromised", so neither he nor Goldman stayed. They had their names removed from the film's credits and accepted an offer by Bill Mechanic – 20th Century Fox's then-president – to set up a new animation studio in the US (which would become Fox Animation Studios). Bluth said to his animation crew, "I can't chew with someone else's mouth". Despite this executive interference, The Animated Movie Guide noted MGM/UA producer Walter Mirisch's comments on the film: "I think it's one of Don's best films ever...There's no issue of our claiming the credit for this. It's his film".

Music

The Pebble and the Penguin
Soundtrack album by Barry Manilow and Mark Watters
ReleasedApril 11, 1995
GenreFilm score, soundtrack
Length46:40
LabelKid Rhino
ProducerBarry Manilow

The songs were written by Barry Manilow, who previously wrote the songs for Thumbelina, along with longtime collaborator and lyricist Bruce Sussman. The film's score was composed by Mark Watters. Manilow, who had "started off wanting to be a composer", got an opportunity to do this when he was approached to "compose songs and the underscore" for the film and Thumbelina. The songs and score for the soundtrack were both performed by the Irish Film Orchestra and the Irish Chamber Choir. Barbadian singer Geoffrey Holder sang the deleted song "The Beachmaster" for the film.

An accompanying soundtrack was released on April 11, 1995. This soundtrack is currently out of print. The soundtrack includes various artists with actors singing their parts for the film, including Martin Short, Annie Golden, Tim Curry, and James Belushi among others. The album was given a rating of 2 and a half stars at Allmusic.com. Reviewer Peter Fawthrop wrote: "Barry Manilow's soundtrack would have upped the mediocrity on a better project, but The Pebble and the Penguin as a film was conceived with such dismal effort from the then struggling Don Bluth studio that the songs and score work on a somewhat passing level".

The version of "Now and Forever" sung by Barry Manilow and Sheena Easton during the film's end credits is not on the soundtrack, but was later put on Barry Manilow's album Duets and a later reissue of this soundtrack as a bonus track when Kid Rhino re-acquired the rights to the soundtrack in 2012.

Songs

Original songs performed in the film include:

No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."Now and Forever"Annie Golden & Chorus5:19
2."Sometimes I Wonder"Martin Short4:17
3."The Good Ship Misery"Neil Ross, Will Ryan, Philip L. Clarke & Chorus2:37
4."Don't Make Me Laugh"Tim Curry2:07
5."Sometimes I Wonder (Reprise)"Annie Golden2:29
6."Looks Like I Got Me a Friend"Martin Short & Jim Belushi3:30
7."Now and Forever (Finale)"Chorus1:04
8."Now and Forever (End Credits Version)"Barry Manilow & Sheena Easton4:13

Release

Theatrical

The Pebble and the Penguin was released in the United States and Canada on April 12, 1995. When the film was nearing completion, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures purchased the distribution rights in North America, while Warner Bros. under its Family Entertainment label obtained the foreign distribution rights.

Marketing

The film's tagline was "The adventure of a lifetime begins with one small pebble". Seventy-five readers of the San Antonio Express-News each won four tickets to the film. The special showing was held at 11 a.m. on April 8 at the Embassy Theater in San Antonio. The Pebble and the Penguin was cross-promoted with Anheuser-Busch's Sea World Parks.

Driving Mr. Pink

The Pebble and the Penguin was accompanied in its theater run by a new Pink Panther short entitled Driving Mr. Pink in the United States, which was adapted from an episode of the successful Pink Panther TV series (though The Pebble and the Penguin was accompanied in its theater run by a new Looney Tunes short entitled Carrotblanca internationally). The short was produced and directed by Paul Sabella, and was co-directed by David Feiss, who would go on to create Cow and Chicken and I Am Weasel. The short also featured the character of Voodoo Man from the 1995 TV show. It is a late one-off short in the Pink Panther short series – they were abundant and popular until 1980. The San Francisco Chronicle critic Peter Stack described the short as "loud, obnoxious, idiotic".

Reception

Box office

The Pebble and the Penguin did poorly at the box office, grossing a little over $3.9 million against a $28 million budget, mainly because it was overshadowed by A Goofy Movie which was released five days earlier. However, the film became popular among fans and audiences of Bluth's films and later gained a cult following through home video releases.

Critical reception

One of animator Don Bluth's lesser efforts, The Pebble and the Penguin is cute but little more. The primary culprit is the script; aside from the unusual setting and small parcels of information about Emperor penguins, is hackneyed and uninvolving. The decision to focus on the relationship between Hubie and Rocko (while relegating the leading female character to nothing more than a trite damsel-in-distress role) is unfortunate, as the writers bring nothing new to the "buddy" concept and their attempts at humorous dialogue for the pair are often painful. With the exception of a song that pays homage to Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill, the Barry Manilow-Bruce Sussman songs are even worse. Bluth is incapable of creating bad animation, and there are several sequences (especially those taking place underwater) that have moments of beauty; overall, however, the animation doesn't have enough sparkle to breathe life into the movie. The cast is certainly not at fault, with Martin Short doing everything short of bursting through the screen to hold the viewer's attention, Tim Curry turning in a reliably sinister performance, and Annie Golden lending her powerful and unique belt to the little she is given to sing. Penguin is not totally without charm -- but the amount it has could almost be fit into a pebble.

A review of the film by Craig Butler on AllMovie, concisely summing up the general consensus among reviews.

Upon release, the film was widely panned by critics. On Rotten Tomatoes the film has a rating of 31% based on 13 reviews, with an average rating of 4/10. The film was given a Two Thumbs Down rating on Siskel & Ebert, with Gene Siskel noting that the film's animation looks "cheap and unfinished" and that "none of the songs are memorable"; Roger Ebert added his dislike of the "dumb songs", "silly story", and the film's color-coding of its heroes and villains, noting the lighter color scheme of Hubie when compared to Drake. The latter took this a step further by arguing: "What do kids learn from this? Nothing overt. Just a quiet, unstated impression: White is good and brave, and brown is scheming and negative. Reinforce that through lots of cartoons (examples: Aladdin and The Rescuers Down Under) and no wonder even black children choose white dolls in some psychological experiments". The Salt Lake City-based Deseret News said that "the songs are forgettable, the story one-note and the characterizations quite weak". Louis Black of The Austin Chronicle said the film "lacks dramatic structure and narrative drive: Songs and animated action pieces are narratively connected but the film doesn't feel as though it is an organic whole. All the elements are here, they just don't come together". Time Out wrote that "the characterisations are weak and unendearing. Worse, the big 'action' sequences turn up with the pacing and predictability of clock chimes. And, in what is perhaps the last great medium for musicals, the perfunctoriness of Barry Manilow's songs and arrangements seem guaranteed to put off yet another generation". Caryn James of The New York Times wrote that four would be "the optimum age for viewers of this gentle, animated musical", adding that "the action seems flat and low-rent compared to those earlier movies", and that it "doesn't have the vivid characters, first-rate animation or sense of adventure that turns movies like The Lion King into endlessly watchable favorites".

Washington Post film critic Hal Hinson wrote that "the banality of the story, the pallid look, the flatness of the characters add up to a product that is, at best, second rate". Peter Stack of the San Francisco Chronicle said that the "gnashing whale scenes are intense enough to push the G-rating envelope". Dan Webster of The Spokesman-Review in Spokane wrote that the film "is only an average effort in virtually every respect". The Record said "the orchestration is too fancy, too loud and often drowns out the lyrics. This is a kid's movie, but musically it sounds like a full-costume Broadway show with full-supporting chorus line. It's a little disturbing to see a children's movie that perpetuates the erroneous image of killer whales as violent creatures. It is, however, a perfect indication of the limited imagination which went into writing The Pebble and the Penguin". Jane Sumner of The Dallas Morning News said the film got a "charming mating ritual" and turned into "sappy action romance with celebrity voices". The book Contemporary North American Film Directors suggested that the film suffered from containing elements of "the same unimaginative and clichéd Disney of the 1970s that Bluth had been so critical of". The Animated Movie Guide said that "the hero was a stuttering wimp, the songs didn't advance the plot, the dialogue was incessant and superfluous, and the pacing was plodding and dull", and also said the film was an "utter waste of talent and resources", due to interference from external forces.

Some critics did praise various aspects of the film, particularly in regard to Bluth's animation. These reviews, however, were almost exclusively mixed. Common Sense Media said that "the background animation of capricious weather conditions is lovely, as are the top-notch original songs by Barry Manilow and Mark Watters". The Deseret News wrote: "Bluth's strength continues to be colorful, classical-style animation, and there are some gorgeous moments here — especially some underwater sequences". The Austin Chronicle wrote: "The Pebble and the Penguin features some beautifully animated sequences The characters are great and the voice talents of Martin Short...and James Belushi...are terrific". Variety said the film has a "heartwarming story, some lively songs and professional animation", adding that it is "a sweet, enjoyable romantic tale more likely to succeed as an afternoon diversion on home video than on the big screen". James wrote "the tunes Mr. Manilow has written for the movie are, like his familiar pop standards, bouncy and catchy", and commented that "the animation is fine". Hinson wrote that "a flourishing opening number—titled 'Here and Now'—proves that Short can belt out a song with the best of them", adding that the "Bluth studio style of animation is passable, and, in the case of a Brecht-Weill flavored production number, occasionally inspired".

Stack described the "show-tune-style songs" as "pleasant but forgettable", adding that "the singing by Short, Belushi, Curry and Broadway belter Golden is the best thing about the film". It also noted that "one of the obvious obstacles was how to color a film whose natural shadings tend toward black, white and degrees of gray. The result is a lot of odd but fascinating colorations -- the sky might turn up yellow at times, or the sea a deep maroon". Webster wrote: "In an era when G-rated movies are as rare as Hollywood humility, any attempt at family entertainment should be lauded", adding "let us salute Don Bluth and his team of animators". In a rare case, The Daily Gazette in Schenectady gave the film 4 stars. Monica Sullivan of Movie Magazine International noted that the film was "heartily enjoyed by the two little girls who saw it with me at a kiddie matinee".

Awards

The 2007 DVD release of The Pebble and the Penguin was nominated for a Satellite Award for "Best Youth DVD" from the International Press Academy but was beaten by Disney and Pixar's Ratatouille.

Year Nominee / work Award Result
2007 The Pebble and the Penguin Satellite Award for Best Youth DVD Nominated

Home media

The Pebble and the Penguin was released on VHS and LaserDisc by MGM/UA Home Video on August 15, 1995.

Throughout 1997, songs from the film were released alongside others from the MGM vaults in four MGM Sing-Along cassettes released by MGM/UA Home Video. The loosely themed tapes had titles such as "Searching for Your Dreams", "Having Fun", and "Being Happy". The Pebble and the Penguin was first released by MGM Home Entertainment on DVD on January 19, 1999.

A "Family Fun Edition" of the film was released only in the United States and Canada on March 27, 2007, by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment. Though they were initially unsatisfied with how the film turned out, Don Bluth and Gary Goldman returned to supervise the restoration for the "Family Fun Edition", which features color corrections, refielded scenes to hide missing effects and correct other errors from the theatrical release.

The 2007 DVD release of The Pebble and the Penguin was, according to The Hindu News, a part of a wave of penguin-related media consisting of March of the Penguins, Happy Feet, Farce of the Penguins and Surf's Up. This trend was also picked up on by The Paramas Post and The Age. In 2010, the film was re-released, along with Rock-a-Doodle, as a double-sided DVD, but the print utilized was the un-restored 1999 DVD.

The film was released on Blu-ray for the first time on October 11, 2011.

References

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  40. "Film Facts". The Pebble and the Penguin Museum. Retrieved 2020-07-07.
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