Bolt (voiced by John Travolta) is a sheltered Hollywood dog, the star of his own TV show with his best friend Penny (Miley Cyrus). Trouble is, he thinks he really IS a super-dog, so when he gets separated from the studio and left to fend for himself on the other side of the country, he’s confronted with the reality that the plot of his series isn’t really happening, and he doesn’t have special powers to survive with.

I must admit I’m not a big fan of most of the computer-animated family films of the last decade, with the exception of those created by the masterpiece factory at Pixar. Too many of them rely on stale conventions, crude humor and fleeting pop-culture references (i.e. Shrek). Just as often a group of relatively serious, rather dull main characters advance the story while some kind of wacky animal comic relief steals the show (i.e. Ice Age & Madagascar).

While Disney’s latest animated film suffers somewhat from the latter syndrome (Rhino the hamster has all the best lines), it shows signs that a recent regime change–Pixar co-founder John Lasseter is now in charge of Disney’s creative arm–is bearing promising fruit. Some of Pixar’s freshness and depth are starting to find their way into Disney’s films, even those that were mostly completed when Lasseter came in (i.e. Meet the Robinsons). I can only hope the trend continues. For now, Bolt stands head and shoulders above most of its peers (and it’s maybe starting to approach Pixar levels of quality). – [DVD]

Animation/Comedy/Family

Rated PG

DVD Release Date: 3/24/09

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