Rating :   73/100                                                                       97 Min       

‘Rise of the Guardians’ features an all star team-up of Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, the Sandman and Jack Frost – all chosen by ‘The Man in the Moon’ to become the guardians of the safety and well being of children on Earth. The latest animation from Dreamworks, it’s the perfect introduction to the holiday season for cinema going families with kids, and the sharp and colourful graphic work together with an entertaining moral story, replete with pantomime bad guy Jude Law (as the Boogeyman), should provide a decent hour and a half’s entertainment for adults as well. The fairies, in particular, are most awesome.

Criticism has been lain against it for lacking soul, which is a problem with a lot of animations issuing forth from Dreamworks. However, I think enough of an effort has been made to label that a little unjust, although The Red Dragon admits slight bias in favour of the cute, and slightly overused, fairies and it is certainly true that the bulk of the piece remains the frothy, whirly, kaleidoscope of flashy action sequences that the production company favours so highly. Fun nonetheless – look out toward the end for the not so subtle nod to the head of the company’s previous work….