The Tale of Despereaux Blu-ray Review

Based on the best-selling children's book, and loaded with an all-star list of voice talents, The Tale of Despereaux is a April 7th Blu-ray animation release from Universal Studios Home Entertainment. Complete with Blu-ray Hi-Def, the film is a fun family movie about a mouse who wants to be a knight and a noble rat caught in up in a sewer full of bad rats.

Despereaux (Matthew Broderick), the mouse, and rat Roscuro (Dustin Hoffman), are kindred rodent spirits. Despereaux is an outcast in his own community because he is a little different and has no desire to be like a mouse. He refuses to learn to cower in fear and exerts a sort of bravery that throws caution to the wind, and defies mouse logic. After realizing no hope to change him, the town council banishes Despereaux into the deep underground of the sewer, where no mouse has returned.

The Tale of Despereaux DVD Giveaway

Roscuro is a noble rate who finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time, and he winds up in the sewers amongst a community of rats with no shame and no civilization. The leader takes Roscuro "under his wings" but Roscuro never takes to the sewer rat way of life. Instead, he sheepishly goes along with orders. Soon, Roscuro and Despereaux cross paths, and together, the two 'gentlemen' must decide whether to risk their lives for honor to hide in shame.

The Tale of Despereaux Movie Clips
The Tale of Despereaux is a wonderful animated adventure. The characters are charismatic and the voice talents are well cast. The only potential challenge with this G-rated movie is that it possesses a bit of a darkness that might scare young ones. You might say it has a bit of a smaller-scale Rats of Nimh feel at some points, though a little more upbeat. This film is a hero story. There is even a princess that needs to be saved.

The all-star voice talent in the movie includes: Matthew Broderick, Emma Watson, Dustin Hoffman, Sigourney Weaver, Kevin Kline, William H. Macy, Tracy Ullman, Stanley Tucci.

The Tale of Despereaux Hi-Def Blu-ray with BD-Live offers these exclusive features:

• Two All-New Deleted Scenes
• Make Your Own Soup Game
• Animating the Animals

• Format: AC-3, Animated, Color, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Subtitles: English, French, Spanish
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating:
• Studio: Universal
• DVD Release Date: April 7, 2009
• Run Time: 94 minutes

Reviewed by Neil