Mr. Popper's Penguins - DVD Review and Giveaway

*To view the Rafflecopter form and enter giveaway, please click on actual blog post link.*

DVD Synopsis:

Everyone things their father is strange, but it doesn't get any stranger than when Mr. Popper inherits six penguins and turns his home into a penguin habitat.  It may be unconventional, but the experience brings Mr. Popper closer to his children.  Jim Carrey stars in Mr. Popper's Penguins, available on Blu-ray, DVD and digital download December 6th.  The whole family will be full of laughs watching Mr. Popper, a driven businessman, inherit six adorable and mischievous penguins.  As Mr. Popper quickly gets attached to his winged roommates, his life quickly unravels:  The deal he's been working on with a formidable socialite, Mrs. Van Gundy (Angela Lansbury), is detrailed and Popper almost lands in jail.  While Popper's penguins turn his swank New York apartment into a snowy winter wonderland, they teach him valuable lessons about family - human and otherwise.

My Review:

Jim Carrey plays the role of a divorced father who is too busy for his children.  Penguins unexpectedly arrive at his home and his life is turned upside down.  Lots of chaos and craziness ensue to keep the penguins a secret and to keep them safe.  You can expect the usual Jim Carrey antics in this fun family film.  The penguins are the highlight of the movie.  They all have different names and personalities.  I enjoyed watching this movie with my kids, laughing several times.

My Strange Dad Feature:

In this feature, we'll examine dads in movies that do strange things and go to extreme lengths to be better dads, leading them to have a better relationship with their children.

  Robin Williams in Mrs. Doubtfire

After a divorce leaves him only being able to see his three children once a week, Daniel (Robin Williams) sees that his ex-wife has put out an ad for a nanny.  Using his skkills as a voice-over actor, along his brother's make-up and costume artistry, he answers the ad as 'Mrs. Doubtfire' - a British nanny and housekeeper.  Acting in disguise as the children's nanny, Daniel is able to see them everyday and spend time with them.  Through his alter ego, Daniel is able to better himself, and ultimately ends up being able to spend time with his children as himself.

Tim Allen in The Santa Clause

As Scott Calvin (Tim Allen) attempts to spend Christmas Eve with his son, they hear noise on the roof and go to investigate  The noise turns out to be Santa Claus, and through a series of mishaps, Scott reluctantly becomes Santa.  Naturally, his ex-wife and her new psychiatrist husband think that Scott is completely insane and succeed in revoking his custody of their son.  However, with the help of elves in the North Pole, Scott is able to convince his ex and her husband that he is, in fact, Santa Clause and is, in turn, able to spend Christmas with his son.

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson in The Tooth Fairy

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson stars in The Tooth Fairy as Derek, a minor league hockey player who is dating a single mother (Ashley Judd) of two young children.  Unfortunately, Derek is callous towards children and steals the dollar left under his girlfriend's daughter's pillow for a tooth she lost.  For this he is sentenced to two weeks of duty as a tooth fairy.  Through his success and hilarious failures as a tooth fairy, Derek learns the importance and value of helping children (and adults) fulfill their dreams.

Jim Carrey in Mr. Popper's Penguins

The uptight businessman Mr. Popper (Jim Carrey) is given six penguins after his father's death.  He intends to give them away, until he discovers that his children love the penguins.  Through the penguins, Mr. Popper and his children are brought together and grow very close.  After the penguins lay three eggs and only two of them hatch, Mr. Popper becomes obsessed with the unhatched egg.  When he can't save it he gives all of the penguins to the zoo.  After realizing that he let his children down, he steals the penguins back and regains his children's love and respect.

Chevy Chase in National Lampoon's Vacation

In a misguided effort to bond with his wife and children, Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) takes his family on a cross-country road trip to visit the fictional amusement park, Walley World.  Along the way, Clark encounters numerous crazy obstacles (including being stranded in a desert, a dead Aunt Edna, and Walley World being closed for repairs), but through his determination (and mild psychotic break) he is able to eventually provide his family with the quintessential - albeit slightly unorthodox - American Vacation.

Win It!

One person will win Mr. Popper's Penguins DVD and a Mr. Popper's Penguins Ice Cube Tray.