The Wild (September 20/06)

Though The Wild is slightly better than the majority of its computer-animated brethren, one can't help but wish that movies of this ilk weren't being geared solely towards small children.

Like Chicken Little, Ice Age: The Meltdown, and Valiant before it, The Wild generally emphasizes style over substance - to the extent that, although there are some funny bits here and there, the film is ultimately a forgettable and disposable piece of work.The storyline, which is uncomfortably similar to last year's Madagascar, revolves around a cadre of zoo animals who find themselves stranded in the wild after one of their own goes missing.

Although the opening half hour of The Wild is actually fairly engaging - particularly as head lion Samson (voiced by Kiefer Sutherland) has to figure out how to retrieve his wayward son - the film goes downhill fast once the animals arrive on the deserted island, particularly as the group splits up and encounters individual problems (ie Eddie Izzard's koala bear discovers that a tribe of wildebeests consider him a god).

The sudden emphasis on wacky hijinks - coupled with the general lack of plot to propel things forward - quickly transforms The Wild into a typically frenetic farce that has little to offer viewers over a certain age.