Meerkats: The Movie

SINOPSIS

Taking its cue from March of the Penguins, this cute if rather contrived wildlife documentary justifies its elevation to the big screen thanks to charming narration, voiced by the late Paul Newman and written by Alexander McCall Smith (author of the No 1 Ladies' Detective Agency books). Familiar to many thanks to the BBC's Meerkat Manor series, the adorable Kalahari-dwelling creatures are naturals before the camera (the production crew spent six months habituating them to their presence) and the footage is of the standard one would expect - not a computer-generated image in sight! Focusing on "Kolo" and his growth from irresponsible pup to mature member of meerkat society, this is thoroughly engaging for younger viewers - but be warned, there are some scary sequences involving predators such as snakes, scorpions and eagles.