Originally named Arctic Dogs, this simple animated adventure boasts a host of famous names for its voice cast, including Jeremy Renner, Alec Baldwin, James Franco, Heidi Klum and John Cleese.
Unfortunately none of them can bring the slow story to life, which concerns a white arctic fox named Swifty (Renner) who is tired of disappearing into the background (which is going to happen when you have white fur and live in a snowy town) and dreams of being a courier for the Arctic Blast Delivery Service.
Instead, he works in the company’s mailroom until the day he finally gets a package to deliver – however, the delivery address leads him to the hidden fortress of evil Otto Von Walrus (Cleese). Walrus’s plan is to melt the polar ice caps, but with the help of his friends and a couple of beavers (or are they otters?) who call themselves the ‘resistance’ and speak in French accents, Swifty sets out to foil his scheme.
While the plot does touch on climate change, everything moves at such a snail’s pace it’s likely children will be snoozing through the admirable environmental message. They may perk up when the cute creatures get a brief moment of humour or adventure against the lovely snowy backdrop, but there’s nothing here that they will remember after the end credits roll.
Is Polar Squad suitable for kids? Here are our parents’ notes...
There are a couple of mild action sequences – including one where Swifty and his friends are briefly in danger – but nothing that should upset the over 6s.
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