The Tale of Despereaux

Directed By: Sam Fell Rob Stevenhagen
Story By: Will McRobb Chris Viscardi
Produced By: Gary Ross Allison Thomas
Starring: Matthew Broderick, Robbie Coltrane, Dustin Hoffman, Richard Jenkins, Kevin Kline, Frank Langella, Stanley Tucci, William H. Macy,
Tracey Ullman, Emma Watson, Ciarán Hinds
Narrated By: Sigourney Weaver
Cinematography By: Brad Blackbourn
Edited By: Mark Solomon
Music By: William Ross
Production Companies: Relativity Media, Larger Than Life Productions, Framestore Animation
Release Date: December 19, 2008 (United States)

Plot: A sailor named Pietro and his rat-companion Roscuro dock in the French kingdom of Dor—famous around the world for its delicious soups—during the "Royal Soup Day." The chief cook, Chef Andre, makes good soup due to Boldo, a magical genie who emerges from his pot and who is made entirely of food. Roscuro sneaks into the royal banquet-hall and falls into the Queen's soup, giving her such a fright that she has a heart-attack and dies. The entire hall erupts into panic and the guards pursue Roscuro. He attempts to flee the castle but sees Pietro's ship has sailed away. He narrowly escapes being killed as he falls through a sewer drain which leads to the castle dungeons. He is found in the dungeons and taken in by Botticelli Remorso, the leader of the large rat population. Distraught over his wife's death, the King forbids the consumption all things related to soup and declares rats "illegal." Without its soup, Dor becomes impoverished and dreary. Andre is banned from making soup and Boldo stops appearing. The King's daughter—Princess Pea—despairs over the sad state of the kingdom and how her father's grief-based reclusive behavior shuts her—and the world—out.

In a mouse village within an abandoned kitchen storage room, Despereaux is born into the Tilling family. As he grows up, it is clear he is different from other mice: he is not timid—but rather is brave and curious—unnerving other mice around him. In an effort to teach him to be a "proper mouse," his brother Furlough takes him to the royal library to show him how to chew books, but Despereaux is more interested in reading them. He becomes fascinated by books about daring knights and trapped princesses. One day, Deperaux encounters and converses with Princess Pea. He promises to finish the story about a trapped princess and tell her how it ends. Upon discovering Despereaux has violated mouse law by talking to a human, his parents Lester and Antoinette turn him over to the mouse council to avoid blame.

The council banishes Despereaux to the dungeons, where he meets and tells the princess story to the jailor, Gregory, who stops listening and leaves Despereaux alone. Deperaux is captured by the rats and thrown into their arena with a cat. As Despereaux is about to be eaten, Roscuro saves his life by asking Botticelli to give Despereaux to him to eat. Having been unable to adjust to being a sewer rat, Roscuro is desperate to hear about the outside world. The two become friends, as every day Despereaux tells him the stories and of the princess and her sadness. Wishing to make amends for all the trouble he's caused, Roscuro sneaks into Pea's room and tries to apologize to her, but she lashes out at him, and he's pursued by guards once again. Hurt by this, Roscuro vows revenge. He enlists the help of Miggery "Mig" Sow, Pea's young, hard-of-hearing maid who longs to be a princess herself, by convincing her she can take Pea's place if she kidnaps her. After Mig drags Pea to the dungeons, Roscuro double-crosses her and locks her in a cell.

Review: This is a fun filled facinating tale of a very noble mouse, chivallry and the persue of restoring happiness and soup to a very sad kingdom. Where we meet an amazingly brave mouse. Desperaux is a small mouse with really big ears and a big heart. He lives in a very sad kingdom where soup has been banned and the people are depressed. All the while there's a conspiracy at work. On that only a brave knight could resolve. Armed with his trust sewing needle sword Desperaux sets out to right the many wrongs and bring happiness, and of course soup, back to the French kingdom of Dor.

Despereauxs' journey starts from his birth in an abadoned kitchen storage room. Born to the Tilling family, he is deemed unusual for a mouse. As he is not shy but adventurous and curious. His brother Furlough takes him to the library to teach him how to chew books. Despereaux however enjoys reading them instead. And he begins to learn all about being a brave knight. While reading a book he encounters a human named Pea, talking to her and promising to read her stories. This sets of a chain of events as mice are not allowed to talk to humans. It is this turning point that pushes our hero into the world of humans, cats, mice and rats. Where he will prove ultimately that he does have what it takes to be a knight.

A wonderful story for the whole family.

M J Flack