U

While there’s certainly no denying that U is awfully impressive in terms of its visuals – the animation has seemingly been rendered entirely via paintbrushes – there’s simply not a whole lot here to hold the interest of older viewers. Set in a mystical land populated with strange creatures, U follows a Princess and her unicorn-like companion as they encounter a group of nomadic critters known as Yeah-Yeahs. The Yeah-Yeahs bring with them music and a free-wheeling sense of fun, elements that are practically alien to the Princess. U has been directed by Serge Elissalde and Gregoire Solotareff (with the latter penning the screenplay), and while the two men do a fantastic job of creating a distinctly unique and thoroughly captivating world, they’re not quite as adept in giving the audience a palpable reason to care about any of this. As such, the movie is sporadically compelling but ultimately tedious – though there’s little doubt that younger viewers will thrill to the colorful antics of these admittedly memorable characters.

** out of ****