Justin Case You Needed Another Animated Quest
Once upon a time the Knights of Valor were the heroes of the kingdom but then the lawyers and pen pushers took over and being a knight was outlawed. For young Justin all he ever wanted was to be like his grandfather, a heroic knight, sadly his father, a prominent lawyer, thinks other wise. After paying his grandmother a visit as wee as Lara, the lady he loves although she hasn't got a clue, Justin leaves home on a quest to become a knight. It is along the way that Justin meets 3 monks, a wizard and the perky Talia whilst also having to find his inner hero when a former knight turned rogue returns to the kingdom looking to cause chaos and destruction.
I can't believe it's not Disney or Dreamworks or what ever studio it is now who does all the animations. That was the thought which kept running through my mind as I watched "Justin and the Knights of Valour". Whilst that is a compliment it is also a complaint. The compliment side is simple as the textured animation work is almost as good as anything which the bigger name companies deliver. On top of that there is also an impressive array of actors who have lent their voices to the characters all of which are comically quirky.
But whilst visually and in other ways it is up there with the better known animation studios it sadly has a problem when it comes to the story because it feels too much like something another studio had already done. In fact whilst the characters are amusing they also feel like they have come out of various other animations. As such whilst I am sure young audiences will find "Justin and the Knights of Valour" entertaining for grown ups it has the ability of coming across a bit like an imitation, a good one but still an imitation which is all a bit too familiar.
What this all boils down to is that "Justin and the Knights of Valour" is undeniably entertaining and in truth better than I expected it to be. But the whole thing is too familiar and as a grown up I spent much of my time thinking about which other animations it reminded me of rather than being entertained by this animated adventure.
