Review of The Tale of Despereaux (2008) by Kevin R — 10 Apr 2010

A hero doesn't appear until the world really needs one.

Due to an unfortunate incident that is blamed on the local rats, the king has a broken heart, the princess is locked in a room, the rats are banished from kingdom, and the kingdom no longer receives rain. A small mouse, who has never behaved like other mice, is going to save the day...or try really hard.

"There's a rat in my soup.".

Sam Fell (Flushed Away) and Robert Stevehagen (Balto) collaborate to deliver The Tale of Despereaux. The storyline for this picture is pretty good but not as imaginative as others films in this genre. The animation is stunning and on par with the Pixar classics. The voiceovers are well selected and include Dustin Hoffman, Matthew Broderick, Robbie Coltrane, William Macy, Tracy Ulman, and Emma Watson.

"A rat is a rat.".

My daughter and I caught this film while flicking through the channels this morning. I was hoping this film would be on par with Ratatouille. This was nowhere near as good as Ratatouille despite having a similar storyline. Overall, this is worth viewing due to its wonderful animation and entertaining storyline; however, this cartoon does not deliver anything new or original to the genre.

"Long live soup!".

Grade: C+ (6.5).