march of the penguins

Looks like TV Land isn't the only cable channel going away from their original programming model and getting into movies.

The Weather Channel has announced that it is adding movies to its schedule. The movies would have a scroll at the bottom that would keep viewers informed of the weather and other weather-related news and information, and each movie will be hosted by a meteorologist. The movies they've chosen so far all have a weather or a nature theme to them, including The Perfect Storm, March of the Penguins, Deep Blue Sea, and Misery. I'm guessing they picked Misery not for the crazy-woman-holds-a-writer-hostage angle but for the fact that the story takes places during a snowstorm.

• At 7, ABC Family has Mary Poppins (repeated at 10).
• At 8, FOX has a two-hour, repeat House.
• CBS has a new How I Met Your Mother at 8, followed by new episodes of The Class, Two and a Half Men, Old Christine, and CSI: Miami.
• NBC has a new Deal Or No Deal at 8, then John Goodman in the live-action Year Without A Santa Claus.
• The CW has new eps of Everybody Hates Chris, All Of Us, Girlfriends, and The Game.
• Disney has Mickey's Twice Upon A Christmas at 8.
• At 9, ABC has a new Supernanny, followed by a new What About Brian.
• Lifetime has the new holiday movie A Christmas Wedding at 9.
• Sci-Fi has the premiere of The Lost Room at 9.
• TV Land has 100 Greatest TV Quotes and Catchphrases at 9.
• GSN has a new High Stakes Poker at 9.
• There's a new WWE Monday Night RAW at 9 on USA.
• Also at 9: Hallmark has March of the Penguins.

When I first heard that a film spoof based on March of the Penguins was being made, I thought the idea sounded kind of lame. However, the more I hear about it, and some of the great TV personalities involved such as Lewis Black, Dane Cook, Tracy Morgan, Jamie Kennedy, and Bob Saget (who wrote and directed the film, and provides the voice of the lead penguin), I think the mockumentary might actually be decent. Ok, actually I'm not a huge Dane Cook fan, but whatever, Farce of the Penguins sounds like it's going to be pretty funny. Apparently the first draft of the film had to be toned down quite a bit for theatrical release, so I'm looking forward to some of that quality Saget blue humor. Look for it to come out sometime later this year.

One of these things is not like the other. I read this story and that's the song that got stuck in my head. The Hallmark Channel just bought the rights to air 29 feature films on its network. Soon, films like Miss Congeniality, Troy, The In-Laws, and New York Minute will pick up where Little House on the Prairie and Moment of Truth movies left off. The one movie that really stands out from the others is March of the Penguins. It actually makes a little bit of sense that it's on the Hallmark Channel, because the movie ends up being very emotional and about life's struggles and the saving grace of family. I just expected it to be on Discovery.