The new movie "The Penguin Lessons" is another recent movie that is about what happened in Argentina during the years 1976-1983, known as the "Dirty War", where as many as 30,000 citizens were arrested and then disappeared (in some cases by dropping them from a plane into the Atlantic Ocean). The Argentinian government targeted any person even loosely connected to any movement that might be considered in opposition to the government.
In the case of The Penguin Lessons, the story of a Penguin rescued from an oil spill by a high school English teacher Tom Michell, played by Steve Coogan happened during the time of the Dirty War. At first, Tom tries to get rid of the Pengiun by returning him to the ocean, but soon both Tom and the Pengiun realize that they have become friends. Over time Tom brings the Pengiun into this English class, so the boys he is teaching will pay more attention, with a side effect of the nonstop cruel bullying of one overweight boy eliminated just by the presence of the Pengiun.
The other story within this very good film is about a young woman, who works as a maid for the school is taken away from her family, leading Tom Michell to risk his life trying to save her from her government kidnappers.
This story has several moments of humor and some emotional highs and lows and overall this is a heartwarming story about the value of animals and their effect on humans, very well told.
The Rotten Tomatoes ratings for The Penguin Lessons are a solid 84% with a very high audience rating of 94% that I agree with and highly recommend this film.
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