I think the charm of this movie comes mostly from the fact that they have rendered the animation directly from the book. It is hard to appreciate what they have done unless you have the seen the book illustrations first.I thought the movie was terrific, but a bit long for the little ones. My 3 1/2 yr old sat through it, but looked somewhat overwhelmed during some of the more intense action scenes. I think he will enjoy it more next year when he is older and we can watch it in the comfort of our home, no doubt the DVD will go on sale the day after Thanksgiving 2005.