REEL 2 REAL: This wee mouse has big ears and a big heart

When a pint-sized mouse with larger-than-life aspirations sets out on a quest for integrity to save a lovely human princess, Mouse World, Rat World and the human world all come crashing together in a thrilling battle of anger, love and forgiveness.

At least that’s what happens in Universal Pictures’ version of the new animated film, “The Tale of Despereaux.”

Set in a castle in the kingdom of Dor, the movie stars Despereaux (voiced by Matthew Broderick), a mouse whose gigantic ears make up for what he lacks in height.

When he fails to achieve the necessary mouse attributes of scurrying and cowardice, his family orders his brother to take him to the castle’s library where he will hopefully learn to eat the books and gain more characteristics of a mouse.

Instead, Despereaux begins to read them.

One of the fairy tales he reads inspires the wee Despereaux to live his life as a noble knight, strictly following the knight’s code of honor, which demands courage and chivalry.

However, when he breaks one of the rules of Mouse World and talks to the Princess Pea (voiced by Emma Watson), he is outcast and banned to live forever in Rat World, a place overridden with a colony of vicious, hungry rats who live floors below in the dungeon.

There, this tiny critter befriends Roscuro (voiced by Dustin Hoffman), a rat who, after listening to Despereaux’s stories, wants to befriend the princess. When she rejects him, he tricks servant Miggery Sow (voiced by Tracy Ullman) into helping him kidnap the regal daughter. Now, Despereaux is the only one who can save her from peril, which he eagerly attempts. Yielding his needle as a sword, he follows one of the movie’s main ideas: “A hero doesn’t appear until the world really needs one.”

Based on Kate DiCamillo’s short novel by the same name, this movie focuses not on the cliché plot of good vs. evil, but instead on the themes of social acceptance and the constructed differences that often try to divide us from one another.

To add a more creative flair, unique styles of animation are used to distinguish certain scenes in the film between dreams and reality. The diverse settings and characters are all wonderfully created for the varying worlds, but the world of the rats produces the most eerie, frightening vibe. Rat World almost makes the audience want to cringe because of the graphic portrayal of the rodents’ matted hair and twisted noses that oddly make them look more human than animal.

If the draw of an epic mouse adventure doesn’t entice you, the rest of the all-star cast of voices including Sigourney Weaver, Kevin Kline, William H. Macy and Christopher Lloyd, will most likely persuade the more reticent movie-goer in you. Maybe.

The plot itself moves at a decent pace, but may be too complicated for its target audience of small children to follow completely. The relationship between each character is vital to the outcome, so any early misunderstandings could cause great confusion later on. Nonetheless, this movie still manages to entertain audiences while reminding them that every outcast belongs somewhere. For those looking for a feel-good family movie about being yourself, look no further than the enchanting “The Tale of Despereaux.”

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