Arthur and the Invisibles

Imagine the Smurfs meeting Troll dolls in the world of The Dark Crystal, slap the whole shebang with a plastic CGI sheen, speed everything up so you can barely see what's happening half the time, and—voila!—you have the recipe for this tedious whirling dervish of a movie that may dazzle very young children but will likely bore and confuse everyone else. Director Luc Besson's (La Femme Nikita) Arthur and the Invisibles is a forced tale of the titular 10-year-old boy (the charming Freddie Highmore, from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Finding Neverland), who journeys from his live-action world of 1960s rural Connecticut to the animated fantasyland of the Smurfishly Trollish Minimoys on a quest to save his grandma's (Mia Farrow) farm from greedy developers (there's treasure involved, of course). Many famous voices—including Madonna, Robert De Niro, and Snoop Dogg—utterly fail to distinguish themselves as a variety of stock fantasy characters, perhaps because they find themselves in stock fantasy situations. Best awful moment? David Bowie as the voice of the bad guy stops the action cold with his soliloquizing on why he's just so darn evil—and it's not even a very good reason. Not recommended. [Note: DVD extras include the seven-minute featurette “The Voices of Arthur and the Invisibles,” the “Quest for Love” music video performed by Jewel, an “In the Recording Studio with Jewel” featurette (2 min.), the “Beautiful Day” music video performed by Elijah, and trailers. Bottom line: a small extras package for a forgettable kids' flick.] (M. Johanson)