See and feel what it was like when dinosaurs ruled the Earth, in a story where an underdog dino triumphs to become a hero for the ages.
An object lesson in how one awful creative decision (sassy voiceovers, flavourless pop tunes) can wreck a movie that might otherwise have been watchable. Wait for the Blu-ray and watch it with the sound off.
It looks good but is weirdly misconceived. My six-year-old gave it one star.
Given the breathtaking and often terrifying 3D imagery of the dinosaurs in their habitat, it's hugely disappointing that the film-makers have dumped so much saccharin on to their own movie.
The storyline is about dinosaurs discovering the meaning of family and love in the course of a huge herd migration: it's really a version of the 2000 Disney adventure Dinosaur, combined with March of the Penguins from 2005. Pretty silly – but reliable machine-tooled family fare for the holidays.
This very handsomely rendered (if somewhat insipid) creature-feature may have its roots in the BBC documentary series, but cutesy anthropomorphism is the order of the day as pachyrhinosaurus runt-of-the-litter Patchi attempts to grow up and find true love without being eaten, burned, drowned or trampled.
Alas, the whole thing has the whiff of an educational Christmas present gone wrong.
Ignore the chit-chat, though, and the CG critters wow.
Walking with Dinosaurs hits big screen in 3D
General release. Check local listings for show times.
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