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Epic review

Check out our review of Epic - is it any good and how suitable is it for kids?

A Dog's Purpose Poster

Epic

Certificate: U

Voices of: Amanda Seyfried, Beyoncé Knowles, Josh Hutcherson, Colin Farrell

Release date: 2013

3 out of 5

3

There’s a war taking place in the world that we don’t know about – a war between a group of miniature warriors named Leaf men who fight on the side of nature and life, and the evil Boggans, who want to turn everything to rotten, mouldy mush. When teenage girl MK (voiced by Seyfried) goes to stay with her eccentric dad, she learns that he has been trying to find these teeny creatures of the forest, but it is actually MK who stumbles upon them – and then finds herself shrunk to their size just as the leaf men are trying to transport a precious pod that the Boggans, and their leader Mandrake (Christoph Waltz) want to destroy.

Based on the William Joyce children’s book The Leaf Men And The Brave Good Bugs, this does have some flaws– elements are reminiscent of better movies such as The Borrowers and Honey I Shrunk The Kids, and it’s never really clear just why the Boggans are so intent on destroying the forest, which makes for some rather dull bad guys. That said, this is a visually impressive animated movie for kids (from the team behind Ice Age) and there is some fun to be had from the vocal casting, which includes Irish comic actor Chris O’Dowd as Grub the snail, Steven Tyler as wise singing caterpillar Nim Galuu and stand-up comic Aziz Ansari as Mub the slug.

Not exactly epic, then, but a spirited, stunning-to-look at animated adventure nonetheless.

Is Epic suitable for kids? Here are our parents’ notes...

Very young viewers may find the Boggans frightening as they wear cloaks made out of rat skins, especially the leader Mandrake.
In one scene, the miniature MK meets what she thinks is a cute mouse, only for it to rise up and attack her. Younger viewers may find the toothy creature a bit scary.

If you like this, why not try: Ferngully: The Last Rainforest, Antz, A Bug’s Life, Honey I Shrunk The Kids, James And The Giant Peach,