When young Flora (the likeable Lawler) saves a squirrel from an automated lawn mower and gives it the kiss of life, she becomes convinced that the furry rodent she names Ulysses has superpowers in this cute Disney live action adventure.
If he is a superhero, Ulysses’s power seems to be creating chaos as everything in his path is destroyed, including most of a local doughnut shop – the destruction of which comes to the attention of the local dogged animal control officer (Danny Pudi). Can Flora save her pet squirrel from the evil jobsworth, and save her parents’ marriage while she is at it?
While some of the elements are modern – such as having Flora’s parents (Hannigan as a romance novelist and Kassir a struggling comic book writer) living apart and, of course, that robotic lawn mower – this is very much in the vein of 60s and 70s Disney family flicks like The Cat From Outer Space and the Herbie films as Flora and her pet go from one fun misadventure to the next.
And it’s no bad thing to be old-fashioned – if you can leave all cynicism behind, this is a fuzzy, pleasing little diversion for families with younger kids, featuring some enjoyable performances, sweet jokes and with an adorable squirrel (created with some very convincing CGI) at its fluffy heart.
Is Flora & Ulysses suitable for kids? Here are our parents’ notes...
This is a family movie for all ages but very young children may be upset when Ulysses gets into various scrapes.
There is some mild language.
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