The Tale Of Despereaux 
'A hero doesn't appear until the world really needs one' goes the tagline of this animated feature from Universal Studios, based on the popular children's book. In this instance the hero in question happens to be a misfit little mouse named Despereaux (Matthew Broderick). Living in a royal castle that has banned all happiness, this high-spirited little mouse teams up with Princess Bea (Emma Watson), to bring life, love and laughter back to the gloomy inhabitants. The animation throughout is excellent and the voice acting is superb, but it never quite lives up to its (ironically) closest rival, Pixar's Ratatouille, because it doesn't have the duality to its jokes that the best children's animated features have. This won't stop it being a box office smash though, as it has all the heart and warmth needed for a family trip to the big screen this winter.
