Do animals merely mate? Or do they also love? This question (and the answer) is at the center of Academy Award wining documentary, March of the Penguins, a moving portrayal that makes the story seem much larger than “a nature film.”

Prior to watching this film, I had never given much thought to the habits of Emperor Penguins in Antarctica. Now that I know something of their lives, I’m astounded by what they go through. For instance, after the females lay their egg, the males then guard it non-stop from the frigid cold, while the exhausted females walk for days over the ice to the open ocean to feed. By the time, the mother returns to care for the newborn penguin, the father hasn’t eaten in close to four months.

Emperor Penguins are noble creatures, often human-like in their upright stance, walking and behavior. It was good to learn about them.