Happy Feet Two (2011)

(On Cable TV, June 2013) Let’s hand it over to writer/director George Miller: He’s never content to deliver something entirely conventional, and so it is that Happy Feet 2 gladly takes up wildly different protagonists that (almost) never meet, adds a live-action sequence in the middle of an all-CGI film, tackles existentialist philosophical issues, heightens the dramatic stakes beyond expectations and brings everything together in a stomping-tapping-clicking climax.  Not everything works all the time, but the film manages a few high notes along the way, including a laugh-aloud opening medley, banter between two unusually bright krill and some spectacular Antarctic scenery.  While the film can feel aimless (especially compared to the first one), it has the decency to build to a good conclusion.  Sure, Happy Feet 2 could have been better… but why complain when it’s cute, charming, toe-tapping fun?