The newest Disney flick has kids grabbing for 3-D glasses and adults chuckling at the all-star cast cameos. Okay, Meet the Robinsons does not quite have the charm and warm-fuzzy feeling that old classics like Beauty and the Beast and Cinderella give viewers, but maybe we should cut the creators a break.

Considering that this was Disney’s second shot at a CGI movie after parting with long-time production partner, Pixar Animation Studios, this animated feature deserves a second viewing.

Meet the Robinsons begins with 12-year-old named Lewis (voiced by Daniel Hansen and Jordan Fry), an orphan with a big brain and inventions that don?t quite work. After facing 124 families who do not want to adopt him, Lewis sets out to find his biological mother. His plan is yet another invention, which he will demonstrate at his school’s science fair.

Unfortunately, Lewis meets a mysterious black-haired boy named Wilbur Robinson (Wesley Singerman) who claims to be from the future. Wilbur is desperate to find Bowler Hat Guy (Stephen Anderson), who is also from the future and who plans on stealing Lewis’ invention and selling it as his own.

Bowler Hat Guy steals one of two time machines from the future and Wilbur is on a mission to get it back via the second time machine. To prove to Lewis that he is indeed a kid from the future, he takes Lewis to his time at which point the audience is first introduced to the playful, imaginative world of the future. It looks suspiciously like a city-sized section of Disneyland.

After crash-landing the time machine, the two kids set out to secretly repair it so Lewis can get back to his own time and stop Bowler Hat Guy from stealing his invention.

Based on William Joyce’s William Joyce’s children’s book, A Day With Wilbur Robinson, this Disney flick captured the warmth and humor that some recent films have been missing. The characters were quirky and fun to watch, especially the two kids.

Though I could have done without a couple of scenes (the jerky five-minute section which introduced the entire Robinson clan and a fight with a talking T-Rex) the overall effect was excellent. Not only will kids be entertained, but the parents will find many of the jokes fairly hilarious, such as the sudden cameo of Tom Selleck, who voices the notorious Mr. Robinson, foreshadowed early in the film.

The movie struck the right note as a clever and touching story with a not-too-cheesy message on the importance of true family. Of course the ending is an uplifting conclusion, a true Disney trademark. Walt himself would be extremely proud of his crew. The studio has proven that it can “keep moving forward,” such as Lewis’ motto suggests, creating better, more modern movies. Who needs Pixar to create a CGI film, anyway?

Meet the Robinsons is now playing at any local theater and is also offered in both 2-D and 3-D versions.