Pets on a Train

“Falcon” is a wily little raccoon that serves a community of stray animals a bit like Robin Hood. He scavenges what he can and distributes it to the hungry, all of whom are eagerly awaiting his grand plan to provide them with a sumptuous Christmas lunch. For that, he is working with badger “Hans” on plans to relieve an high-speed train of most of the contents of it’s buffet car! Having nimbly tapped into it’s security systems, though, “Falcon” discovers that he has been betrayed and that it is going to be down to him, a collection of largely pampered pets and a police dog “Rex” to put things right before a catastrophe occurs. The plot is a familiar variation on a well-used theme, but there are plenty of adventures to be had as he has to galvanise his new team which includes a rather cowardly hound, a goldfish in it’s hermetically sealed bowl and a tortoise that doubles up as a bouncing weapon on more than one occasion as they have to work their way along this train to reach the cabin. The animation is nicely detailed and imaginatively presented and the narrative also takes a fun poke at the banality of local television - and it’s self-obsessed onscreen “talent” too as they sensationalise events to enhance both ratings and career prospects. It features the usual elements of teamwork, inter-reliance and there’s even an hint of a romance (though quite how that could ever pan out is anyone’s guess) and it passes an hour and forty minutes effortlessly.