feel is very literary, as it should be. And you get the feeling they made some sacrifices to get the book to the screen. Don't they always? The film makes me want to read the book and see what I missed. Still, the story stands well on it's own.The voice talent What a star packed cast!! was held in check allowing the story to shine through. You don't find yourself thinking, "Hey, it's Robin Williams!" or "Hey, it's Mike Meyers!" Thank God! Instead, you enjoy the characters and only momentarily think, "I know that voice." It may be too cerebral read "old skool" for some of today's iPod, Dragon Ball Z, Nintendo DS, 24/7 non-stop stimulation generation, but it's exactly the kind of story they need.

because I really loved it and so did everyone I spoke to that's seen it. With an all-star cast this movie truly stands out. Don't miss this one!

it actually had a moral in it. I just would like to say that this is a worth seeing movie. Everyone I've met and spoke to enjoyed as well. ^_^

Despereaux, it feels like you are watching an important film with a message.The voice acting is excellent, with Matthew Broderick and Dustin Hoffman giving heartfelt performances as the main characters. All of the other characters are equally as good, though. William H. Macy and Kevin Kline also give masterful, subtle dialog that really makes their characters come alive. Most importantly, Sigourney Weaver serves as an excellent narrator setting the tone of the movie beautifully. She has a very maternal, calming voice which makes you feels as if you are a kid again, being read to before bedtime.Despereaux feels like more of a wholesome movie than anything else in recent memory. Unlike Bolt or Wall-E, which both had MAJOR problems structurally, Despereaux delivers a very well crafted story where subplots intertwine, heroes evolve, lessons are learned, and evil is triumphed over. It is unlike any other recent animations, which dumb-down the story and rely on slapstick.Most importantly it has a message. It is a movie that parents should be proud to take their children to.

dominate the beginning and the end of the animation, while faded and cold colours dominate the middle.Secondly, I enjoyed how three different types of society were reflected. The first and most apparent would be the Kingdom of Dor, suffering from an incompetent ruler who puts his emotions first, while the interests of the kingdom are second. The second type would be the Ratworld, a consumerist, primitive society, which is ruled on the basis of "the leader is he who provides food and entertainment". The last type is the Mouseworld, a society governed by fear of rule-breaking, emphasising the importance of "fitting-in".Although I liked the middle part of the movie the gloomy one , I was wondering, if it was appropriate for children, as it brought up such issues as revenge, abolishment of one's principles, treachery. I doubt if kids can make the correct interpretations or conclusions , so explaining or talking to them after the movie would be reasonable.The ending was typical of fairy tales: everyone except for the bad guys is fine and lives happily ever after ? .In all, the movie exceeded my expectations. The moral issues brought up, the atmosphere, the unusual development of the story, the happy ending- everything was delivered in a nice way, the only thing that made the movie lose a star 9/10 is the doubt that children would fully understand it.In all, in all, a nice watch :

caught in gloom.One of the most beautiful animated films, possibly the best looking computer animated film yet with a lush scheme that makes it look like various paintings by people like Vermeer. At other times this is the equivalent of book illustrations come to life. As good as the trailers look the film itself is even better. If you love art both fine and animated, see this film since the film references numerous works.For the most part this is a beautifully adapted film that is like curling up with a good book.Where recent films like City of Ember or Twilight or even the Harry Potter films have links to their source novels that make them less then stand alone movies, this film takes the book and puts it on the screen and doesn't dumb it down or make it so you need to have read the book. You have real fleshed out characters of surprising complexity What is a character like Dustin Hoffman's doing in a film that is "for children?" I don't care frankly because its wonderful . These are not one note sketches but living breathing people. It doesn't rush things, this is a film that takes its time telling the story and requires you actually pay attention. Despereaux doesn't show up for at least fifteen minutes as we get a long run up of why things are the way they are.Its wonderful since it beautifully lays out the world we are walking through. Its a real fairy tale movie that is much more complex than anything that Disney has been churning out, or even Pixar with the film juggling several story lines- Despereaux,Roscuro Hoffman , the maid, the Princess- all at the same time all seeming to get an equal amount of weight to their telling. It wonderful.Unfortunately the film has one flaw that keeps it from being perfect. This is a POTENTIAL SPOILER so you may not want to read this bit There is a moment or two after the meeting of Roscuro and the Princess when the climax of the film is set in motion when it felt like something was left out. How does all of the villainy transpire? Its not fully clear and on some level I couldn't completely go with it to the next level. Its like coming to a canyon and you have to bridge it, but you suddenly find yourself on the other side without knowing how you got there. its the sort of thing that made the almost 10 out of ten film closer to 8 out of 10. END OF SPOILER Yes I really liked it. Yes I think you should see it, especially if you like really good fairy tales or stories that are not simple or simplistic. Its a wonderful movie.

the flowers were drained of color, the laughter slowly ceased in this once-magical land. It was into this darkened world that a tiny mouse named Despereaux Tilling was born, and while this virtuous little rodent may have been short in stature, his bravery was ultimately too big for such a small world to contain. An unlikely hero with over-sized ears and a discernible wheeze, Despereaux was taken with tales of chivalry, and longed to one day become a noble figure among his people. Sometimes in order to realize their true destiny, heroes must first experience great hardship, however, and when Despereaux fails to adhere to the rigid rules of his society, he is banished from DorI don't review Children's films very often . Maybe that's because they are on all the time in my house and i don't really take a great deal of notice of them.To be honest i didn't even know of The Tale of Despereaux until i checked the listings but I'm glad i did.This is a magical production that has a mesmerising story , some delightful characters and animation of the highest quality. It reminded me a little of some of the fairy tale books i used to read as a kid. The narration by Sigourney Weaver was perfect. It helped my children understand exactly what was going on when there was two or three sub plots going on.The Characters voices are performed by Dustin Hoffman , Emma Watson , William H Macey , Tracy Ullman , Kevin Kline and Matthew Broderick but to be honest i only recognised the voices of Hoffman and Watson during the film.It does make you wonder why studios pay massive wages to big film stars when a lot cheaper alternative could be used.If you stuck for something to do before the kids go back to school next week you wont go far wrong if you take them to see The Tale of Despereaux .Without a doubt this is the best film i have see this year......and its also the first!8 out of 10

consequences, was a lovely lesson to learn, rather than the rote "value of friendship" moral. I don't quite get the Ratatouille comparisons, frankly. OK, the heroes are both rodents. And there is a chef. This film reminded me more of Big Fish, The Princess Bride, and Pushing Daisies with its small themes and seemingly meandering narrative, that all comes nicely at the end. And yes, the film was utterly beautiful.

it the book? No and I prefer the book, but the movie is good entertainment in it's own right. Give it a chance, it will touch you.