A delightful British comedy-drama praised for its humor in the opening 45 minutes has recently been added to US Netflix, following its theatrical debut just a few months ago.
The year 2025 has seen a surge in feel-good films; titles like The Ballad of Wallis Island have captured our emotions, Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy brought back a beloved character, and Superman showed the appeal of kindness.
Another 2025 release that might have slipped by unnoticed is now on Netflix. This film features Steve Coogan, known for Joker: Folie à Deux and Alan Partridge, and has the support of the Oscar-nominated Sir Jonathan Pryce.
Premiering at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival, this Sony Pictures Classics film also stars Vivian El Jaber, Björn Gustafsson, and, quite unexpectedly, features a real penguin.
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The movie, known as The Penguin Lessons, is adapted from Tom Michell’s touching memoir of the same title.
The Penguin Lessons narrates the story of a British teacher’s unforeseen friendship with a Magellanic penguin that he saves from an oil spill at Punta del Este, a resort in Uruguay.
In the film, Coogan’s character takes the penguin to his hotel room to clean him and later attempts to return him to the sea.
However, the penguin chooses to stay with Michell. Ultimately, the penguin, named Juan Salvador, becomes part of Michell’s class at St. George’s College, a prestigious boys’ school in Argentina.
Check out the trailer below:
Though we won’t reveal the entire story, Netflix viewers have shared that they “laughed so much in the first 45 minutes” of the film.
“Yes just finished it and now thinking of reading the book,” one Reddit user remarked. “This movie is amazing, the comedy, the drama, the penguin. I mean, what else do you need!”
On X, another viewer expressed: “I stumbled across The Penguin Lessons on Netflix and now am trying to watch any and all movies involving penguins.”
“@netflix The Penguin Lessons absolutely brilliant 10 [star emoji]. Highly recommend,” commented another.
A different user typed: “Surprise gem from this year. Much more than just Alan Partridge with a penguin. A devastating, funny and charming British comedy-drama with a waddling star.”
“The Penguin Lessons is such a sweet movie. I should adopt a penguin right away,” another viewer commented.
For those still undecided, The Penguin Lessons holds a commendable 76 percent score on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer and averages 3.5 stars on Letterboxd.
Steve Coogan, 59, known for collaborations with stars like Dame Judi Dench and Joaquin Phoenix from Eddington, shared his experience of working with a live penguin earlier this year.
“You learn to be patient,” he explained to The Radio Times. “Because you can’t blame a penguin if it goes this way and you want it to go that way. So you learn to just wait, and you have to be meditative if you’re not going to become frustrated.”
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Coogan described working on Peter Cattaneo’s project with the penguin as a more ‘serene place’ compared to other filming locations he has experienced.
Fans of Coogan can look forward to more of his work in 2025. He will soon appear in a six-part series titled Alan Partridge: How Are You? set to air soon.
Additionally, Coogan’s upcoming film, Saipan, scheduled for a 2026 release, will depict him as Mick McCarthy, the former Republic of Ireland manager known for his conflict with Ireland captain Roy Keane leading up to the 2002 Men’s FIFA World Cup.
The Penguin Lessons is currently available for streaming on Netflix US.