La abeja Maya

Maya is one of the most delightful and sparkling characters to come out of a kids film in a long time. In a way reminiscent of Miyazaki's youngest heroine's this little bee stands up to authority and keeps just asking questions.

The movie is spectacularly beautiful. There is a rich meadow world that comes alive. My two girls were spellbound for the whole film. The 4 year old can get scared easily in films (the poster of The Boxtrolls was enough to scare her) but she was happily cheering Maya on. The whole bug world comes alive in song and dance that is so charming - the girls were singing all afternoon.

There was enough humour for grownups too. There are a couple of ants (voiced by the Umbilical Bros) that really steal the show. Jackie Weaver as evil Buzzlina had just the right amount of scare and fun in her portrayal. The other voices, Richard Roxburgh and Noah Taylor, etc. did such a great job.

Take your kids, it's a great time at the movies.