Mr. Peabody & Sherman 2014

Lou Lumenick, New York Post: A smart, funny and beautifully designed feature ... Read more

Soren Anderson, Seattle Times: Frantically paced by director Rob Minkoff ("The Lion King") and making very effective use of 3D - Hey! Get that sword out of my face! - the movie will surely appeal to kids. Read more

Guy Lodge, Variety: Swift, peppy and defiantly unendearing, DreamWorks' latest toon updates the zany adventures of the time-traveling dog-and-his-boy sideshow from 'Rocky and Bullwinkle. Read more

Kevin McFarland, AV Club: Unlike the whimsical, slapstick-driven shorts on which it's based, this feature-length adaptation adds an obligatory emotional arc that feels at odds with the zany spirit of historical time-travel tales. Read more

Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic: [It] retains the main characters, the WABAC machine, the trips through history - but not the sense of nuttiness that made the TV cartoon so delightful. Read more

Tom Russo, Boston Globe: Happily, the fallout results in Peabody, Sherman, and Penny all getting caught up in WABAC-machine zaniness together. Read more

Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: The film's animation design is strictly generic in its rounded edges and dutiful 3-D IN YOUR FACE!!! gimmicks. And the story gets off to such a sour start, it takes a long time for the comedy to recover. Read more

Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: Back in his day, Mr. Peabody was a dog whose over-civility had bite. Now he's a genius you want to cuddle with. Read more

Leslie Felperin, Hollywood Reporter: The film's saving grace is its character design and use of 3D techniques to speed things up in every sense when the plot starts to flag. Read more

Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: For all the ways the film reflects its earlier TV incarnation, the shadings have been softened. "Mr. Peabody" could use a bit more bite. Read more

Rafer Guzman, Newsday: The movie has trouble stitching together disjointed episodes into a coherent narrative. Thanks to a strong voice cast, however, the characters retain their charm throughout. Read more

Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger: Fifty years ago, animated entertainment was a lot quieter. But that was my "Mr. Peabody & Sherman." This is someone else's. And it should give them, and even a few open-minded parents, almost just as much giggly fun. Read more

Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News: Burrell doesn't quite capture the wry deadpan of the original, but then, neither does the movie. That's okay. Read more

A.O. Scott, New York Times: This DreamWorks Animation production, directed by Rob Minkoff ("Stuart Little," "The Lion King") from a screenplay by Craig Wright, is not perfect, but it is fast-moving, intermittently witty and pretty good fun. Read more

Michael Sragow, Orange County Register: Most of the vocal performers are promising, from Ty Burrell and Max Charles as Mr. Peabody and Sherman to Stephen Colbert and Leslie Mann as Penny's parents. Read more

Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer: Mr. Peabody & Sherman has a cool, midcentury-modern look (dog and boy live in a populuxe Manhattan penthouse) and a voice cast that may not be A-list but fits the bill nicely. Read more

Peter Hartlaub, San Francisco Chronicle: Needing to fill an extra 85 minutes, the filmmakers clumsily explore the characters' therapeutic needs. Read more

Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune: What a relief to see that while "Mr. Peabody's" visuals are enhanced to sleek 21st-century standards, the essential charm of the series survives more or less intact. Read more

Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail: Mr. Peabody is fast-paced and jammed with rib-poking historical references, but it couldn't be called witty, even on the broadly winking level of the original cartoon. Read more

Bruce Demara, Toronto Star: Kids of all ages are sure to enjoy this visually splendid, fast-paced blast through the past. Read more

Claudia Puig, USA Today: Puns plus potty humor equals Peabody. Still, it's hard to resist the bespectacled brainiac dog and his beloved boy. Read more

Alan Scherstuhl, Village Voice: More puns, less story, please. Read more

Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine/Vulture: Mr. Peabody & Sherman is slight, but it's exceedingly charming, making good use of a talented voice cast that includes Stephen Colbert, Leslie Mann, Mel Brooks as Freud, and Stanley Tucci as Leonardo Da Vinci. Read more

Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post: You'll need not only your own WABAC machine, but also a shower. Read more