Racing Stripes review

Remember Babe the sheep-pig? Now meet Stripes the racing-zebra. It sounds like a three-legged donkey, but director Frederik Du Chau and a stellar voice ensemble ensure that this Dr Dolittle-style caper has a lively burst of horseplay that'll keep the kids entertained.

With Dustin Hoffman as a Shetland pony, Whoopi Goldberg playing the goat and Snoop Dogg ideally cast as a lazy bloodhound, adults should have fun too matching the star to the animal. And while the humour's a little coarse (crap-munching flies, defecating pelicans), the plot builds to a genuinely exciting racetrack finale that makes Seabiscuit's look like a donkey derby.

Okay, so the human story is pure corn: some sentimental rubbish about a grieving widower (Bruce Greenwood) too scared to let his plucky daughter (Hayden Panettiere) back in the saddle. Still, it manages to remain appealing enough to make it worth a punt.