Bolt

Ever since Lilo And Stitch, Disney has steadily produced a long list of disappointing films, from Brother Bear to Chicken Little, whilst Pixar was making qualtiy family entertainment such as The Incredibles and Finding Nemo.  The quality of every Western animated movie is measured against that of Pixar's output and finally Disney has come up with something that comes close to delivering the goods.  Bolt (John Travolta) is the adorable canine star of his own TV series, where he's gifted with powers such as laser eyes and a "super bark".  In order to ennsure a realistic performance from Bolt, the TV studio go to great lengths to keep him convinced that he's a real-life super dog.  When Bolt escapes the studio and is mistakenly packed off to New York City, he must find a way back to Hollywood and his owner/co-star Penny (Miley Cyrus) without the aid of his superpowers.

On his journey across America, Bolt meets up with a wisecracking alleycat, Mittens (Susie Essman), and Rhino (Mark Walton), a hamster who also happens to be a big fan of Bolt's TV show.  One of the best things about this movie is that all of the characters are so fully realised, funny, just the right side of cute and performed energetically.  Even the human characters are well-rounded, which is rare for films concerning animals.  The influence of Pixar may loom large (Bolt's story arc isn't dissimilar to Buzz Lightyear's in the first Toy Story film) but, unlike recent Disney efforts like Chicken Little, this never feels like it's trying to hard to be hip.  It's good, simple storytelling.  The action sequences are fun and exciting, the relationship between Bolt and Mittens genuinely touching.  There are no surprises here but this is solid, well-crafted entertainment.