In 1976, little Tom Popper speaks to his father over the radio. He confirms that
he received the gift of a snowglobe and asks if it is snowing where he is now.
As the years go on, his father calls him from wherever he is in the world.
In 1981 his father calls him to tell him that he won’t be able to make it home
for his birthday as he has an opportunity that is hard to come by.
Thirty years later, Tom is all grown up and works in New York City.
Using his methods, Tom is able to convince Mr Gemmins to sell his property.
Tom then goes back to meet the partners at his firm and tries
to convince them to make him a partner also. They give him one more property to acquire before
they will do this - The Tavern on the Green. This property is the only privately held piece
of real estate in Central Park and they could build anything they want on it.
Tom is sure that he can do it even though they warn him that it is owned by Mrs Van Gundy,
who has been approached a thousand times but has refused to sell.
Tom goes to see his ex-wife Amanda and their kids Janie and Billy.
The kids decide not to spend the weekend with their father so he goes to his apartment alone.
He receives a call to find that his father has died in Antarctica
and learns that he will have a souvenir delivered to him.
On Monday morning, Tom awakes to find a crate outside his door. Inside it is a penguin.
Tom puts him in the bathtub with some ice cubes and leaves the penguin there.
As he leaves, he manages to break the crate and doesn’t notice the
attached note slip under the dresser. Tom arrives at the Tavern on the Green
and meets Mrs Van Gundy. She says that she can’t sell the Tavern to just anybody.
Her staff are like family and she needs to be sure that family is important to him.
This conversation is a little awkward for him and she seems to get the measure of
him very quickly and sends him on his way. Tom goes home and makes a call to return the
penguin - he also asks for a replacement crate to be sent. However, the penguin has managed to leave
the water running in the tub and the bathroom is filled with water which flows into his apartment.
Tom calls Animal Control but every department he speaks with is unable to help.
When the penguin wakes him with a start, Tom tries putting him out in the hallway
and slides it down the corridor. He later goes to the reception who returns the
penguin to him. The receptionist reminds him that pets are not allowed and Tom has to pay him off.
As he returns upstairs, a neighbor named Cam interrogates him about having a pet
and is clearly jealous that he has a bigger apartment. Tom makes his excuses and leaves.
Some time later, there is a knock at the door and a new crate has been delivered. Tom opens it and
tells the penguin to get inside. As he chases it around the apartment,
more penguins escape from the crate and he is horrified to see six penguins running amok.
The doorbell rings and it is his family arriving for Billy’s birthday party.
They believe that Tom got the penguins for Billy’s birthday and they are thrilled.
Tom quickly names them all before telling Amanda that they came from his recently deceased father.
There is a knock on the door. It is Nat from the Zoo who has come to take the penguins but Tom
tells him that he needs to keep them right now. Nat tells him that this is not good for the
penguins but Tom still refuses for now. The family are waiting inside
and make Tom promise that the penguins are, in fact, Billy’s birthday present.
As they leave, much to Tom’s surprise, the kids ask to come over again the following night.
Tom can’t sleep that night as the penguins make so much noise so he yells at them.
They seem intrigued by the television so he leaves them watching it while he goes to work.
Tom meets with the partners and informs them that he will attend a benefit for
one of Mrs Van Gundy's charities. There he will convince her of his integrity and character.
Pippy tells Tom about the breed of penguin which can form a bond with people.
They are more docile kept at lower temperatures so he reduces the temperature in his apartment.
When his kids arrive, they take the penguins to the park where Tom hopes they will get lost.
Instead they all enjoy a game of football together.
Upon returning to the hotel, Tom has to bribe the hotel receptionist
again. Amanda asks Tom to keep the kids overnight. The kids accuse them of still liking their mum.
Tom leaves the penguins with a babysitter. They are fine while they are watching a TV show
but when she accidentally changes the channel the penguins go mad.
Downstairs, Cam is complaining to reception about the noise coming from Tom’s apartment.
As he speaks, the receptionist notices the penguins leaving the building searching for Tom.
Tom meets with Mrs Van Gundy at the benefit but she repeatedly brushes him off. Suddenly
he sees the penguins arrive and tries to distract her as he runs away from them.
The penguins pursue Tom and land amongst the orchestra causing havoc. Mrs Van Gundy is appalled
but notices them following Tom from the venue. They arrive back home but he doesn't notice
that Nat is watching from outside. The kids are collected by their mother. Janie
is upset but Tom is unable to keep up with her issues. He tries to help but messes it up again.
Back inside, Tom finally starts to bond with the penguins.
Next time the kids visit, he has trained the penguins to dance. Billy is impressed
and Janie announces that she has a date with a boy to the Snowball Dance.
Tom agrees to take her dress shopping. When they arrive home they discover that some of
the penguins have laid eggs. Amanda is called to come and see and she and Tom share a moment.
They arrange a dinner date at the Tavern but during the date Tom keeps glancing across at an
empty table. He tells Amanda that he used to sit there with his father when he used to come home.
As they leave arm in arm, Mrs Van Gundy is watching them from the window.
They go ice skating together and reminisce. When Tom returns home, he finds that the
receptionist has let Nat into his apartment and he is in the process of catching the penguins.
Tom yells at Nat to get away from them but Nat tells him that he doesn’t know
what he is doing with them and he will take them away somewhere safe.
Tom tells him that he is providing the penguins with love but Nat entices them with a fish and
tells them that they love whatever can provide for them. He vows to return.
Tom tries to care for the penguins better but as his kids arrive they leave the door open
and Cam takes pictures. Early the next morning,
the family witness the eggs hatching. Tom’s apartment has become a winter wonderland
as Amanda arrives to collect her kids. One of the eggs is yet to hatch and Billy asks to let
him know when it happens. The following day,
the partners call at Tom’s apartment to find out his progress with the Tavern.
They think he is going crazy and he is fired. Next he googles how to hatch a penguin egg in
an emergency and camps out on the roof with the egg to speed up the process.
Eventually he calls Nat who informs him that there is no hope.
Tom is heartbroken and eventually agrees to let Nat take care of the penguins.
Tom finally returns to work - seemingly re-energised. He tells
the partners that he has decided to take them back. He tells them that he has been working
on Mrs Van Gundy’s children to apply pressure on her to sell. She has called a press conference.
The kids arrive to visit the penguins and find that they are gone. They are distraught and Tom
tries to explain that it’s for the best. Janie reveals that her date asked someone
else out and Tom gives a cold response. Amanda is incredulous and leaves angrily.
As he is about to leave for the press conference, Tom discovers the letter that
dropped beneath the dresser. It’s from his father who apologizes for spending so much time away
and reminds him that he should take the time to be there for his children.
Tom collects his kids and instead of going to the press conference, they head to the zoo.
In the car, he tells Janie to call the boy but she says that she doesn’t really
like him any more. She then tells him to call Amanda which he does and apologizes to her.
They all arrive at the zoo to find that Nat is trading the penguins for other animals.
They discover the penguins in a refrigerator and release them.
Tom locks Nat in the refrigerator. He is soon released by security guards as the family make
their way through the zoo to the exit. They pass through the gift shop
but one penguin gets caught up in a kite. He is pursued by the guards.
The family gets back to the car before they realize they are missing a penguin.
Tom can see it on the roof where it jumps off and glides through the air on the kite.
They now all drive to the Tavern on the Green. Mrs Van Gundy is making a speech as Tom bursts in.
He implores her not to sell the Tavern and she tells him that she is not going to anyway.
Nat arrives and accuses Tom of trafficking stolen penguins - telling Mrs Van Gundy that
he believes that the penguins love him. Nat produces some fish and tries to
entice the penguins but ultimately they choose to go towards Tom.
Mrs Van Gundy tells Tom that the Tavern is his. She remembers him as a little
boy sitting at the table and she had to be sure that the little boy hadn’t got lost.
The partners are thrilled but Tom reveals that he is not going to
sell The Tavern - instead he renovates it and his family enjoy dinner at his table.
He tells his family that he is taking them to the Antarctic where they return the penguins
to the wild. One of the penguins lays an egg in the snow and Tom says that this is a good reason
for them to come back again someday soon. ​​Like and Subscribe for more videos like this
and don’t forget to turn on your notifs. That really helps my channel. Thanks for watching!