Finding Nemo

Finding Nemo is distributed by Disney, and it has what the most heartfelt Disney animated features used to have: rapturous imagery matched with real wit.

The latest flood of wizardry from Pixar, whose productions, from Toy Story onward, have lent an indispensable vigor and wit to the sagging art of mainstream animation.

Finding Nemo is laced with smart humor and clever gags, and buoyed by another cheery story of mismatched buddies: a pair of fish voiced by Albert Brooks and Ellen DeGeneres.

Like Pixar's previous films, Finding Nemo mines humor from the oddities of an unknown world but stays grounded in a familiar one, finding recognizable elements of heartbreak and happiness amid the ink-jetting octopi and irritable flounders.

While Mr. Brooks is very funny, Ms. DeGeneres gives a bravura comic performance, as well as a touching one.

A genuinely funny and touching film that, in less than a decade, has established itself as a timeless classic.

...a good-but-hardly-great animated endeavor from Pixar.

Finding Nemo is ultimately a rewarding, engaging, compelling, and even spiritual adventure that works charismatically on multiple levels.

It looks great, of course: All the Pixar movies do. But the genius of those other movies lay in their actual stories -- stories as inspired as the animation.

Visually, Finding Nemo is spectacular. The animators render theses scenes with exquisite detail and vibrant color, reaching beyond mere CGI-wizardry to artistry.

A beguiling piece of storytelling and creates a magical underwater world through its imaginative graphics and sound effects.

Artistically, it's up there with the all-time animated greats.