Stuart Little

If you told me five years ago that I'd be watching a movie about a mouse who is adopted by humans, I'd probably ask you what kind of drugs you were taking and how many would I need to take to enjoy such puerile piffle. But five years ago we didn't have the kind of technical wizardry we have now; witness Toy Story, the new Star Wars, or any of the recent Disney films. Five years ago, the mouse would have been a regular rodent with a not-too-subtle voiceover. Remember Homeward Bound, the movie about the two dogs and the cat? There was no computer animation there, and you were basically left with three animals who appeared to cavort onscreen while some humans talked in the background.

So now here we have Stuart Little, a tiny little mouse (voiced by the always-fresh Michael J. Fox) who has lived his entire life in an orphanage. One day, the Littles (Hugh Laurie and Geena Davis) come to the orphanage looking for a brother for their young son George (Jonathan Lipnicki). Of course, with so many cute little boys and girls, it's impossible to choose - until they come across Stuart, who seems smart, funny, and wise beyond his years. George isn't too fond of Stuart at the start - he expected something a little... um, taller - but this is a kids' movie, after all, so eventually they bond as only a boy and his mouse brother can - by winning a boat race against a nasty bully.

There are a few storylines jammed into this 85-minute extravaganza. Stuart wants to learn about his natural parents, the family cat wants to kill him, and the parents want Stuart and George to get along. The way most of it plays out will come off as standard movie fare - predictable to those of us over 10, perhaps - but the winning charm of Fox as the loveable Stuart coupled with an engaging and appealing cast of characters makes up for any familiarity you might feel. On top of it all - the special effects. Now, I'm not one to heap overweening praise on special effects, but at no point during the viewing of this movie did I consider Stuart (or the cat, voiced by Nathan Lane) to be an artificial computer creation. Sure, you have to suspend belief a little bit for this movie, but hey - don't you have to do that with almost any movie, anyway?

The Little family are looking to adopt a boy to give their son George a brother. When they go to the orphanage they meet an adorable mouse called Stuart and decide to adopt him. Despite early resistance from George, Stuart makes himself part of the family, much to the chagrin of the house cat Snowball. To get rid of Stuart, Snowball reaches out to some local alley cats to set up a whack on Stuart.

If my plot synopsis has talked up the mafia connotations of the cats, it is because that is the part of the film that I find the funniest part of the film because it is lacking in the syrup that kind of takes away from the rest of the film. The main story is quite sweet but also has a good sense of humour that will appeal to adults as much as children. It's not perfect for, like I said it does get a bit overly sentimental at times although it just about manages to stay sweetly sentimental and not fall into being sickly sentimental.

The animation is superb and only occasionally does Stuart look out of place in the frame. For the most part it all flows well together and was deserving of the Oscar nomination. Just as deserving is the animal training - anyone with cats will know how hard it is to get the little b*stards to do anything you want, so to have them do so much work is very impressive (although I understand it is all about food).

The cast are all pretty good. Davis and Laurie play it straight and are lumbered with carrying the emotional side of the film and don't have much comedy (a shame considering Laurie's talents). Michael J. Fox does the best work - he makes his Stuart very sweet and likeable; a true prince amongst mice! Lipnicki does OK but is basically just the `cute kid' that is legally required in all American family movies. The funny stuff comes from Lane, Zahn, Kirby, Tilly and, best of all, Palminteri, who's mafia cat is hilarious and sends up his own characters by doing so.

Overall this is an enjoyable family film. It may not be hilarious for adults in the way Toy Story and it's like are but it is not dull. It has characters for adults and plenty for children and it's all a bit of fun with a slightly overly sweet centre to it.

Wow, there are lots of name actors are either in front of the camera or being used as voices in this unique animated-real life film. They use real people and animals (except for fake mouths when the animals "talk") and an animated mouse (Stuart, voiced by animation favorite Michael J. Fox.) who looks incredibly life-like.

The colors in this movie are terrific, especially with the house that the Little family lives in. The story has some clever stuff in it but it strictly played for laughs and reactions since credibility is about zero in many parts of this story. However, it's supposed to be outrageous. I don't think Geena Davis has ever played a nicer role than this. It was good to see. The husband was just as nice, played affably by Hugh Laurie.

The jokes are good for the kids and adults. I know a couple of parents who liked this movie even better than their kids, so don't believe it when someone writes that this is a film strictly for kids. That is not so. I did object to some profanity in here at the end, which seemed so out of place, but it's hard to expect Hollywood to get everything right.

The sequel to this film is even better!

Both "Stuart Little" and its first sequel, titled "Stuart Little 2" are two nice little family films that I recommend for their effective blend of drama, adult humor that never goes out of hand, controlled suspense and violence as well as language, and yet it never gets so immature as to become only for the kids. Some critics thought that the movie might have had some moments too intense or unsuited for young children. I was eight years old when I first saw this film and it never bothered me. I was surprised to find swearing in this film, but again, it didn't degrade the film because it was sparingly used and by that I mean it was only used once or twice.

The character of Stuart is very effectively brought onto the screen. The mouse is entirely computer-generated in an efficient way and the contributions of Michael J. Fox's voice work out very well. The same goes for the other animated characters. All of the live-action performances were well-done and they blended in perfectly with the CGI characters.

"Stuart Little" has a good heart and it is can be a very warm little family movie for everybody to enjoy. I still enjoy it nine years after I first saw the film and I do recommend it. It's a film that will suit audience members of all ages. As long as you enjoy family films.

Stuart Little: The Little family set out to adopt a child, and choose a amiable talking mouse instead, much to the chagrin of their son and the family cat.

There are two words that describe this movie - words I swore I would never use in a review- : cute and sweet. Based on the children's story by EB White, the story is funny, cheerful, engaging and translates well to the screen.

The filmmakers obviously realized that making Stuart look real was essential to the movie's success and spared little expense (approximately half the film's $60 million budget went to Stuart). The results are phenomenal - you can see each individual hair on his face, his movement is amazingly fluid and when he talks, you forget he's animated . The same techniques are also utilized to make the film's felines talk. The voices - Michael J. Fox as Stuart and Nathan Lane as Snowbell - were ideal choices and help to enhance the experience.

Everyone left the premiere sporting a big silly grin and I think you will too. One note - you'll never look at pest control quite the same again.