The glittering novelty of computer generated animation has worn off now so film-makers are forced to fall back on the old cinematic faithfuls - plot and character.

No matter how many individual hairs are rendered perfectly in high definition or what software sorcery creates authentic pools of water, if the plot leaks you're sunk.

This latest CGI outing takes the zero-turned-hero template of countless films but crams in so many superfluous characters he ends up buried beneath a deluge of clever tricks.

Otis the cow (ignore the gender confusion) is a party animal who's never happier than when rocking the joint with his farmyard chums Pip the Mouse, Freddy the Ferret and Pig the, erm, pig.

However, the responsibilities of adulthood suddenly loom large when Otis' dad Ben (Glover) is killed by a coyote while protecting the farm's hen coop.

While dad was out facing down the vicious gang of predatory scavengers - beautifully realised by the animators - Otis was having it large down in the barnyard.

The idea that every night is prom night basically ensures one long, overloaded setpiece as up to 120 four-legged animals - including dancing horses and rapping rats - flip onto two legs and party hard until dawn.

Even the most hyperactive child is going to feel in need of anap when confronted with this garish kaleidoscope of colour - a sugar rush of computerised clever-dickery. It's also a shame that the half-formed character of Otis gets obscured by an all-singing, all-dancing gallery of animated grandstanders.

OK, so its visually impressive in a migraine-inducing sort of way...but we're really going to need something a bit out of the ordinary with the bar being raised by the likes of Shrek, The Incredibles and Monster House.

Barnyard is nothing much to crow about.

Tim Evans