The following movie is probably the check-off list for the people behind “Happy Feet.”

Animation movie with an automatic built-in audience of children and parents? Check.

Movie subject is cute, cuddly and coincidentally the same as last year’s surprise documentary hit, “March of the Penguins?” Check.

A-List movie stars Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman, Elijah Wood, Brittany Murphy and most importantly Robin Williams, the king of voice-over work? Check.

Top-notch animation? Check.

Musical numbers (Oh, how I’ve missed thee in animation movies!)? Check.

A hilarious script that both children and adults can enjoy? Check.

Do we have the Harry Potter trailer running in our previews? Check!

Is this a movie likely to do extremely well in its opening weekend? Check.

A movie that will be controversial and will thus lure in other types of audiences as well as continue to pull in the built-in audience members who will see only the cute and cuddly penguins and who will not research the movie before kerplunking their children in front of the movie screen? Check.

“Happy Feet,” opening today, isn’t the movie you are expecting it to be. It is actually a propaganda film disguised as a cute animation movie.

Look at all the promos. Watch the different trailers. Listen to all their spots on both radio and TV. What are they all about? What are the people behind the movie advertising?

The answer lies in cute, cuddly penguins, voiced by movie stars. The musical numbers. Robin Williams. The funny lines. The crisp, dazzling animation.

The basic premise of the movie is easy to follow. All penguins can sing, and use this ability to find their mates. Mumble (Wood), son of Memphis (Hugh Jackman doing his best Elvis impression) and Norma Jean (Nicole Kidman), cannot sing, but can dance. However, the other penguins find his behavior a bit daffy.

At the same time, the penguins’ food supply of fish becomes dangeously low. When the penguin leaders connect Mumble’s dancing to their food shortage, Mumble and his friends, the comedy crew of Latino Adelie penguins led by Robin Williams, attempt to clear his name.

First off the movie is great. You will enjoy “Happy Feet.” Even when aspects of the movie seem off, you will brush the nagging feeling aside.

“Happy Feet” is not a laugh-a-minute type movie but one that offers a terrific experience.

Then the movie stops being subtle. And then all of a sudden the penguins will say lines that will leave no doubt about what the penguin with the “birth defect” is a metaphor for, and who the leaders of the penguin group are supposed to represent.

The ending is bizarre.

Realistic animated humans will stare back at you. You’re looking at yourself (unless you happen to be of ethnic descent, oops), get it? Because there is an important message the movie is trying to teach you, even more important than acceptance of others.

PETA, ecologists, scientists and environmentalists will be extremely proud.

The makers of “Happy Feet” should be applauded.

They have made a wise movie – they are bringing their message straight to the kids, to the generation that will run this country someday, at the stage of life when humans are forming their core ideas and beliefs.

Hopefully it works.