Marine mob movie a hit

An undersea computer-generated 3D animation by DreamWorks, Shark Tale is a humorous take on the classic mob film that carries a noble message - just be yourself and you will be loved.

Directed by Vicky Jenson, Bibo Bergeron and Rob Letterman from a screenplay by Michael J. Wilson and Letterman, this light-hearted film tells the story of a little fish Oscar (voiced by Will Smith) and a sensitive shark Lenny (Jack Black). While Oscar is a hopeless, debt-ridden fish that dreams big, Lenny is a closet vegetarian shark that constantly embarrasses his cold-blooded father Don Lino (Robert De Niro) - the boss of shark mafia.

Fate brings Oscar and Lenny together in an accident in which Lenny's murderous brother is killed. Thought of by other fishes as the heroic shark slayer, Oscar becomes a celebrity. Meanwhile, Lenny - afraid to face his father - hides in Oscar's home incognito as a dolphin.

The two are almost off the hook until Don Lino kidnaps Oscar's girlfriend Angie (Renee Zellweger). Can Oscar find the courage to save his girl and Lenny win his father's approval?

It is difficult not to compare Shark Tale with Finding Nemo, another underwater animation that was last summer's biggest attraction. Plot-wise, Shark Tale is quite complicated, and its dynamic characters are less cute and more multi-faceted than Pixar's blockbuster.

The faked duel between Oscar and Lenny in front of the shark gang is a hilarious dig at the media which is obsessed with creating ordinary heroes. The mafia-like lines - brilliantly voiced by De Niro and Martin Scorsese (the director of GoodFellas and Gangs of New York) - are also of great comic effect.