The reviews lean towards disappointment, though a minority finds an enjoyable family film beneath the familiar material. Praise centres on visual detail and characterisation: Variety admires the animation’s ability to convey personality, while Time Out finds the characters engaging after an unfunny opening. Even the less enthusiastic Slant Magazine credits the inventive animation and lively pace. Humour earns more qualified approval, with Empire finding the supporting cast responsible for the biggest laughs.
The spread is wide, and even the animation divides critics: Empire calls it awkward, while The Guardian finds it unoriginal. Reservations otherwise cluster around weak writing and relationships that fail to engage. Slant Magazine finds the voice work bland and the drama middling; Eye for Film objects to the flat plot and excessive sentiment. The disagreement is chiefly over whether the visual invention and scattered jokes offer enough compensation for the thin story.