Arctic Tale
Paramount Vantage | Release Date: July 25, 2007 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
64
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 26 Critic Reviews
Positive:
19
Mixed:
7
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
83
Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam Arnold
Positioned to be the environmental documentary of the year. Read full review
75
TV Guide MagazineKen Fox
For all the impending doom, the film remains suitable for kids of all ages (the filmmakers even end on a happily reassuring note that is at odds with the film's overall message). Read full review
75
Entertainment WeeklyGregory Kirschling
It's a respectable attempt to get kids who like cuddly animals thinking about death and destruction on a global scale. Read full review
75
The A.V. ClubTasha Robinson
For all the inevitable comparisons to March Of The Penguins, Arctic Tale isn't quite a nature documentary. Read full review
75
Christian Science MonitorPeter Rainer
The best reason to see this documentary is for the stunning shots of polar bears and walruses in the Arctic Circle. If the filmmakers had just left it at that, they would have accomplished a lot. Read full review
75
USA TodayClaudia Puig
Whatever problems some might have with its execution, it's hard to argue against a film whose intent is to kindle youthful compassion for living things and inspire action to protect Earth and its creatures. Read full review
75
PremiereDeborah Day
It’s a playful study of Arctic life, starring a polar bear cub, its prey, and a tagalong fox -- with the inevitable dramatic moments when bear meets walrus. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeTy Burr
Arctic Tale has a very precise audience in mind: Young children who aren't yet ready for the graphs and sociopolitical alarm bells of "An Inconvenient Truth." Read full review
75
Charlotte ObserverLawrence Toppman
It plucks ceaselessly at our heartstrings to play a sad song indeed. Read full review
75
Miami HeraldPeter Debruge
Make no mistake, Arctic Tale is a stunning film, full of all the astonishing, even breathtaking nature photography we've come to expect from the folks at National Geographic. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterStephen Farber
Spectacular photography of the frigid domain of polar bears, walruses and seals is the chief attraction of Arctic Tale. Read full review
70
VarietyKen Eisner
Queen Latifah proves an amiably authoritative narrator, and is allowed more personality than most script readers. Read full review
70
Village VoiceElla Taylor
A smarmy score, some orgiastic farting from a herd of walruses, and a modicum of cutesy anthropomorphism from narrator Queen Latifah prove a small price to pay for this stunningly photographed narrative documentary about a year in the endangered life of Arctic ice floe. Read full review
70
Washington PostDesson Thomson
As charming as it is instructive. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleMarc Savlov
Sometimes a little too pat, a little too cute. Read full review
63
New York PostKyle Smith
The script, narrated by Queen Latifah, is so embarrassingly dorky (it was co-written by Kristin Gore) that it's like Fred Rogers gone hip-hop. Read full review
63
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
The flat narration by Queen Latifah doesn't help, but Adam Ravetch and his wife Sarah Robertson's nature film, Arctic Tale, fails to inspire the kind of rapturous response we felt for "March of the Penguins" for other reasons. Read full review
63
Chicago TribuneMichael Phillips
Watching bear cubs and walrus pups struggling to survive against increasingly tough odds, and on ever-slushier ice shelves, has both its shamelessly manipulative side and its dramatically necessary side, as handled here. This proves one thing: Unlike global warming, some stories really do have two sides. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Jennie Punter
Icy landscapes, the cozy tones of Queen Latifah and a walrus-farting scene that rivals the campfire bean-fuelled explosions of "Blazing Saddles" help make Arctic Tale, a new wildlife documentary, a fun family indoor excursion. Read full review
60
The New York TimesJeannette Catsoulis
The movie’s stunning underwater photography (fearlessly captured by Mr. Ravetch) effectively dilutes the saccharine tone. Read full review
60
Wall Street JournalJoanne Kaufman
The impact of Arctic Tale is blunted by its length (it feels long at 85 minutes) and by its script. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesKevin Crust
Reinforcing the adage that looks aren't everything, the live-action animal drama Arctic Tale arrives in an impressive visual package and even boasts a timely message, but its undistinguished storytelling is a big letdown. Read full review
50
Chicago ReaderAndrea Gronvall
Watching these endangered species evolve new approaches to hunting and shelter is fascinating, but the movie is seriously marred by a cloying screenplay and such kid-pleasing touches as shots of walruses belching and farting. Read full review
50
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
In the end, I'm conflicted about the film. As an accessible family film, it delivers the goods. But it lives in the shadow of "March of the Penguins." Despite its sad scenes, it sentimentalizes. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleJustin Berton
Makes an unpersuasive case that humans are to blame for the shrinking ice caps. Read full review
50
Baltimore SunMichael Sragow
The movie is edited and, worse, narrated in ways that sabotage the magic and even undercut the movie's message. Read full review
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