Review of Horrid Henry: The Movie (2011) by Heather P — 28 Jul 2011

A minor-celebrity pantomime along "St. Trinian's" lines, right down to the school-threatened-by-closure plot and the cameo from the ex-Girl Aloud (here, the bubbly one) casting around for post-pop acting work. Henry himself (newcomer Stevenson) rather gets forgotten in the producers' rush to chuck in talent contests and more streetdancing - the results of a PR brainstorming inquiry into What Kids Like, rather than a coherent story.

Director Moore, already responsible for one "St. Trinian's" rip-off in 2008's "Wild Child", aims for snappy and colourful, but gets something scattershot and synthetic, stuck with the aesthetic of cheap children's television. The nadir is 20 minutes of mirthless eye-rolling from Dick and Dom as quiz show hosts, but then much of it is reliant on C-listers (Noel Fielding, Mathew Horne, Richard E. Grant, finally landing a credit to rival "Spiceworld" for naffness) gurning at the 3D camera and getting water or paint deposited on them for their troubles. Come back Dennis the Menace, all is forgiven.