Customer Reviews

Adventures of Scamper the Penguin

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The animation in this Japanese cartoon is certainly not up to the standards of today's big-budget toonies, but it's a cute little film that smaller kids should find interesting and adults can tolerate. Scamper is a penguin chick with a penchant for wandering away from the nest. Facing attacks from seagulls and sea lions, Scamper nevertheless wanders off and meets a huskie and his human owner, a scientist. Another venture is not as friendly though as Scamper and his little pal Snowflake are whisked away by hunters who plan to sell them to the zoo. They meet Louie, a Macaroni penguin (?) who tries to help them escape.
Scamper teaches the value of learning and family and is harmless enough for the young set, although there is a little disturbing violence with the penguin hunters. All in all, a fun movie for the family to watch together.

I teach Kindergarten and this is my FAVORITE video for this age group. (First and second graders like it too. Scamper has some exciting adventures and really captures the attention of the children. Also, as an added bonus, the cartoon creators were able to sneak in a lot of scientific facts without the kids catching on that they were learning while they were having fun!

This CD is a marvelous one for all children; it is clean, provides a good moral and is very entertaining. My granddaughter, aged 2, loves to watch it over and over.

I got the dvd for my girlfriend because she loved it growing up and it is extreamly well mastered on DVD well done..... Fast shipment and tracking numbers Well done.

I don't remember much from my childhood. I remember Cabbage Patch Kids, Glow Worms, and Scamper.
I used to watch this movie over and over and over. The story kept me completely enthralled. I remember being very stimulated by it, always thinking. I was obsessed. I think it's a must have for kids. It's great, will keep kid occupied, and isn't annoying at all.
Another reviewer on here commented about how negative an infulence it is. It's not, at all. They're really just probably the type of parents who shelter their child from everything, think their kid can do no wrong, and everything that is wrong with parents these days, because there seriously isn't anything negative about this movie.

* some spoilers here*

I have not seen this particular version of the film nor have I partaken in the DVD.

Nonetheless a few thoughts about this film from a viewer who has seen this in the original state.

The production is Soviet-Japanese from 1986 - an extremely popular cartoon from where I'm from (Russia). I recently revisited the film after finally seizing upon it after years and years of memories. I was only a child when I first saw the cartoon and I recall that it affected me greatly.

These kinds of viewings are always risky, because in my adult age I am often disappointed, but my recollections were so vivid that I was convinced that this had to have been something special.

I figured out why this stayed with me for so long. As a kid you are not exposed to much peril in animation. Disney in particular keeps its films very free of any suggestions of danger. There are exceptions like the Lion King, but any kind of death there is accompanied with redemption and clear-cut distinctions between good and evil. Things are not as simple here. We have evil, but we also have instinct and basic survival, meaning laws of nature. Sometimes no one is to blame.

I had a similar experience recently with another Japanese animated work "Pom Poko", which was about a rather bittersweet existence of racoons. Bittersweet is also a good way to describe Scamper or, as they called him in Russian, "Lolo". The ending is profoundly open-ended - not happy but hopeful and somewhat sad. It was affecting.

Now, I know that this is the American version and I bet that it underwent a lot of changes, so I do wonder how much of the peril it has. The original version of course has the final confrontation with the poachers where they shoot at the penguins and kill a few. Interestingly enough I did not recall this happening specifically, but I did remember appreciating the fact that the filmmakers did not treat their young viewers as fools. There is no false merriment and the penguins' land is not a Disney-fied theme park ride. In fact, part of the effect that this cartoon had on this young viewer was in presenting Antarctica as large, barren, mysterious and somewhat melancholic.

The penguins' resilience through the tough conditions of Antarctica and the inherent dangers of human and animal variety is essentially the story. As characters our little baby penguins are not the drivers of the narrative, but are instead caught within one - where the land and its inhabitants thrust them into great danger. This is very non-Disney.

Kids should be exposed to this. This is not about redemption, but about survival and friendship.

The sad thing is that the American version has apparently replaced the wonderfully lyrical original score with an upbeat one. Shucks.

Rating: a neutral 3 out of 5 as I still haven't seen the American version, but the original is wonderful of course.

First, let me say that "violence" in nature does not bother my family. Although I have never eaten penguin, our freezer is full of a variety of fish and wild game. So watching hungry seagulls snatch a few penguin eggs does not bother us in the least. However, I just do not see any point or plot in the story whatsoever. It seems nothing more to me than an animated documentary. Further, the accompanying background music swings unpredictably from a happy, carefree state to dark/somber/ominous mood. I didn't know how I was supposed to feel from scene to scene. Overall, I was left feeling very confused. I am thankful to have rented this one from the library.

Another one of my childhood favorites!!!! AND, I learned how it originated and it make sense now that the words in English don't match those in the original Russian. Bravo!

it's just as i remembered it! of course the quality is that of its time. although this film is dated, the lessons the children will learn are most important. my shipment was quick and my dvd was in perfect new condition.

thanks!

I've been watching this movie since i was a little girl and it was my favorite for many many years. sure the animation is crap but what child really cares?
its wholesome and fun!