Penguins are pretty big right now. After David Attenborough practically devoted an entire series to the polar birds, David Miller’s sequel to the Academy Award winning Happy Feet rolls up at an opportune moment. Audiences are returned to the Antarctic landscape and reunited with the toe-tapping tribe of penguins: Mumble (Elijah Wood), his love Gloria (Alecia Moore – aka P!nk – replacing the late Brittany Murphy), and their buddies Lovelace and Ramon (Robin Williams).

Mumble and Gloria now have a son of their own, Erik (who seriously ups the ante on the cuteness of penguin chicks). Reluctant to dance, he runs away to become enthralled with The Mighty Sven – a Swedish penguin whose ability to fly has earned him a cult-like following. When an iceberg crashes into the Emperor colony’s home however, all forces combine to save the day. Meanwhile, under the ice, Matt Damon and Brad Pitt voice Will and Bill, two krill with a budding bromance who escape their swarm on an existentialist quest to become ‘one in a krillion.’

The film’s animation is stunning, its most impressive feat being the attention to details in the texture of the snow, the fluff of the penguin chicks and underwater scenes in superb 3D, akin to the footage of Frozen Planet itself.

Apart from the popular song mash-ups in the first sequence of the film (strengthened by the vocals of P!nk), the soundtrack has two left feet, failing to be as catchy as its predecessor’s with often overly-sentimental lyrics. A passing reference is made to environmental issues such as global warming and responsible fishing but the educational aspects fail to make a lasting impression.

The real problem with the film however, is the lack of coherence between storylines. The role of aliens (humans) is ambiguous, and the hilarious sub-plot of the krill never converges with the plight of the penguins and seems to serve only as diversion from the rather chaotic main story. But if light-hearted diversion is what you’re after during the festive season, then Happy Feet Two delivers with all singing, all dancing versions of the birds that continue to top the avian popularity charts.