Lovely

Rating: 9/10 (6 January 2004)

In years to come, the period from 1989 onward (starting with "The Little Mermaid") will probably be regarded as a golden age of animation. At the end of this offering, you have to ask yourself, where can animation go from here? I don't know, but I bet that someone at Pixar does.
In the meantime, this is a breathtaking job of film-making. The animation is astonishing - the underwater effects are so convincing that, at times, I found myself wishing for a wetsuit. Add to this a clever script, glorious music, and perfect voicing - Ellen DeGeneres, of all people, deserves special mention and I loved Geoffrey Rush's stint as a pelican - and the result is a rather special movie experience.
Is there a flaw? Well, maybe it's a bit on the long side for an animated feature.
Strongly recommended nevertheless. Rating: 9/10.