Animated films have, in recent years, set the benchmark for clever writing, funny gags and famous actors tripping over themselves to get a part. Last year in between Shrek 2 and The Incredibles came Shark Tale.

Shark Tale introduces us to Oscar, the small fish with big aspirations, Angie, the little pink best friend who wants to be more, Lenny, the Mafia family vegetarian shark, and many other characters in the deep blue ocean. An unfortunate event in the shark family brings Oscar to their attention, and he and Lenny team up to prove themselves to others.

Shark Tale is a fun movie. Zellweger, Jolie and Smith amp up their regular screen personas to amusing effect, and it's enjoyable to watch (or more precisely listen to) Robert de Niro and Martin Scorcese do their goodfella schtick ("sleeps with the fishes" has a whole new relevance!). It has been criticised for not being particularly original, but hey, since I had just as much fun as I did with any of the other Dreamworks/Pixar animations, I don't really care. The kids will love it, there's plenty of cultural references to keep the adults entertained, and it's much less scary than Open Water, so come along and enjoy!