This started out really strong. Interesting story, characters, visuals...but then something happened. It couldn't decide who the story was about. Despereaux? Dustin Hoffman's rat character? The fat girl? And the more the separate stories diverged, the less sense any of it made until the whole thing literally fell apart. The subplots never came back together to influence or enhance the main story. The climactic third act was a total mess that kept interrupting itself with off-putting jump cuts until it so sabotaged itself you didn't really care what happened to any of them. This was where someone needed Disney's storytelling 101 class. Sure, they were trying to tell the story in a clever way, but sometimes, straightforward is best. As for the voice work, everyone was good, except, surprisingly, the Brits. Emma Watson brought nothing to the princess except a kind of bland haughtiness and the usually brilliant Tracey Ullman was completely wasted in a voice performance that you might expect from, well, Emma Watson. As much as I admired her sober narration, I don't need Sigourney Weaver to tell me what to think and how to feel. Actually, I think SAG should ban all big time actors from voice over work. Throw a bone to a bunch of talented unknowns. Those fat cats don't need the money. 6 stars for the beautiful animation! Definite "Sleeping Beauty" (Disney again!) influence. The dragon fight with the "Hero" is right out of that film.
Review of The Tale of Despereaux
