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The classical story is superb, the vocal cast is excellent, and Sinbad's exploits are exciting and extremely well animated. And yet the film feels half-hearted in its cliche-leaden dialog and the clunky interaction between the characters. Nothing is remotely original, from unnecessary anachronistic slang to the uninspired forbidden-love/opposites-attract romance between Sinbad and Marina. There are a few hysterically outrageous zingers obviously added to the script later (two Shrek writers are credited as "consultants"), since it's clear that Logan (Gladiator, Star Trek Nemesis, The Time Machine) doesn't have a creative thought in his head. And while much of the animation is astonishingly gorgeous, the human characters look like tired retreads of every Disney film we've ever seen--all big eyes and tiny waistlines. That said, Eris is fantastic, with a combination of Pfeiffer's gleefully evil inflections and truly inventive visual styling. It's strange to see such a mixture of originality (the action sequences are astonishing) and laziness (the writing and character design). The result is a film that's enjoyable ... but instead of being something special it merely passes the time.