I took my two-year-old son to see this movie, his first in a theater, and we both had a great time. Curious George is a light-hearted, sweet movie that portrays our little monkey's mayhem without resorting to manic pacing, blaring music or wise-cracking.

In fact, the makers deliberately put very little into the movie that is aimed over the children's head and at the parents. So, unlike a Shrek or a Toy Story movie, there was never an instance of a joke that mommy and daddy laugh at and the kids miss. All the jokes are shared.

So, see this movie with a small one. It probably isn't 'slick' enough for anyone over 8. People without small children can take a pass. The most hard core Curious George fans can rent the DVD.

Based on the popular children's books, this was a cartoon I had heard a little about, so I thought I might as well see if it was worth getting interested in. Basically a natural history museum is having a hard time attracting people, so the owner's son Junior (David Cross) wants to turn it into a parking lot, while his father Bloomsberry (Dick Van Dyke) wants to keep it running. So to try and get some more business Bloomsberry sends museum guide Ted, aka Man with the Yellow Hat (Will Ferrell), to go to Africa and find an ancient mysterious idol called the Lost Shrine of Zagawa. He finds what he thinks is the idol, a tiny keyring size gem monkey, and he also finds a mischievous and curious monkey (Frank Welker) that follows him back home. While he tries to find a way to explain the bad news of the statue and the museum's possible closure, he gives the monkey the name George (after President Washington), and tries to keep him under control. George is fascinated with the world around him, and he is never far away from creating a little bit of chaos while he has fun exploring and touching things in his wonder. Thankfully, in the end, Ted finds out the whereabouts of the true statue from the tiny one in the sunlight, the museum is saved, and Ted finally gets love interest Maggie (Drew Barrymore), with George sticking around. Also starring Eugene Levy as Clovis, Joan Plowright as Ms. Plushbottom, Billy West as Manager and Clint Howard as Balloon Man. The animation might not be the most exciting thing ever, but with good voice casting, a good story, songs by Jack Johnson (including "Upside Down" and "Supposed To Be"), and a cute and cuddly lead creature like George, you do get to have some fun. Worth watching!