“The Tale of Despereaux”

We just got back from the movies, where I was privileged to be in attendance at our two-year-old grandson’s first full-length motion picture. He was completely absorbed for the whole 90 minutes, like everyone else reaching for popcorn and stuffing it in his mouth while his eyes were glued to the big screen.

We watched “The Tale of Despereaux,” and I recommend it. It’s a computer-animated literary fairy tale about a mouse who refuses to cower and a rat who developed a taste for fine food and so refuses to eat garbage. (Think of the symbolism!) It’s on the serious side, rather than comic, with a rather complicated plot. But it’s good, celebrating the chivalric virtues of “honor, courage, and justice.” And what it takes to be a “gentleman.” How sad it is that those very words seem anachronistic today. The movie also celebrates the Christian virtue of forgiveness. Sammy and I give it two thumbs up.