Family/Comedy. Featuring the voices of Patton Oswalt, Lou Romano, Janeane Garofalo, Ian Holm, Brian Dennehy, Peter O'Toole, Peter Sohn, Brad Garrett, Will Arnett. Director: Brad Bird.

The word 'masterpiece' is overused, but in the case of the computer-animated wizardry of Pixar, no other word will suffice.

Since its dazzling 1995 debut with Toy Story, the company founded by John Lasseter has revolutionised attitudes towards animated films with dazzling stories such as Monsters Inc, Finding Nemo and The Incredibles.

Yet as well as dizzying technological advances, there is equal attention to detail in the screenplays, creating loveable characters who leap off the screen and into our hearts.

With Ratatouille, director Brad Bird delivers a glorious modern day fable about a diminutive hero who dares to pursue his lifelong ambition on the streets of Paris.

The dreamer in question is Remy (voiced by Oswalt), a rat who fantasises about becoming a top chef like his rotund hero, Auguste Gusteau (Garrett).

"If you are what you eat, I only want to eat the good stuff," Remy declares, desperate to escape the drudgery of foraging for festering scraps.

"Food is fuel," counters his father Django (Dennehy), who doesn't want his son getting ideas above his station.

By chance, Remy emerges from the sewers into the middle of the French capital and creeps into his idol's restaurant.

The plucky vermin concocts a delicious soup, only for kitchen worker Linguini (Romano) to take the credit.

With chef Skinner (Holm) demanding a repeat performance, Linguini joins forces with Remy to create more culinary delights, the rat controlling his human cohort's movements by tugging tufts of hair under his chef's cap.

Can Remy and Linguini achieve the impossible: earn a glowing review from notoriously sardonic food critic Anton Ego (O'Toole) and win the admiration of beautiful colleague Colette (Garofalo)?

Ratatouille deserves three Michelin stars for its well-crafted script, garnished with laugh-out loud comic interludes, such as Remy's make believe conversations with Gusteau.

Gorgeous visuals will have you salivating from the very first sizzling scallop, before a breathtaking, high-speed tour of the kitchen, seen from Remy's point of view as he darts under workstations and through the wheels of trolleys.

Vocal performances are strong, from O'Toole's oily reviewer with a penchant for caustic critique, to Oswalt's loveable fur-ball who dares to shoot for the moon.

FIVE STARS

3:00pm Thursday 11th October 2007

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