Herald rating: **
Another animated/live-action mix based on a 70s TV series, presumably designed to drag a whole bunch of middle-aged movie-avoiders into the multiplexes.
Fat Albert revives Bill Cosby's tragi-comic memories of his childhood, which begins with lonely teen Doris (Kyla Pratt) crying. A tear falls on the remote and Fat Albert (Kenan Thompson) and his cartoon mates dive through the screen into Doris' home to help her through her social problems.
Like most of the genre, it's just too hard for the writers to squeeze an episode or so of a TV sitcom into a full-length movie, despite the sincere messages about self-esteem and feeling good about being different, two themes that Cosby (who makes a cameo appearance) has championed throughout his career.
There are few features on the disk: the director and producer's commentary and a couple of extended scenes.
* DVD, video rental out now
Fat Albert
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