Zack Snyder takes the helm in his animation debut Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, based on the children's series by Kathryn Lasky.
The story takes place in a world filled with owls and other animals. An ambitious owlet named Soren (voiced by Jim Sturgess) and his older brother Kludd (Ryan Kwanten) are kidnapped by a band of owls known as the Pure Ones. Their plan: to take over owlkind and segregate the birds based on species, where the 'strong' rule and the 'weak' are slaves.
Soren escapes and sets off to find the Great Tree of Ga'Hoole, home of the Guardians, owlkind's last hope against the Pure Ones.
Legend of the Guardians is one of the most visually stunning animated films to date. The details - feathers fluttering in the wind, raindrops splashing - are nothing less than spectacular.
Expect to be blown away by the epic battles between good and evil. The battle gear and warfare strategy add depth to the already impressive mid-air clashes.
The film has clear echoes of Star Wars. Ezylryb (Geoffrey Rush) and Metalbeak (Joel Edgerton) mirror Yoda and Darth Vader, and Soren is clearly based on Luke Skywalker. And when Ezylryb teaches Soren to fly in the middle of a monsoon, urging him on by saying 'Use your gizzard', you know he really means 'use the force'.