Featuring the voices of: Reese Witherspoon, Hugh Laurie, Will Arnett, Seth Rogen, Kiefer Sutherland, Rainn Wilson, Paul Rudd, Stephen Colbert.

Directors: Rob Letterman, Conrad Vernon.

Just when it seemed that no one could challenge the computer animated might of Pixar (Ratatouille, WALL-E), directors Rob Letterman and Conrad Vernon deliver an out-of-this-world adventure which proves heroes come in all shapes and sizes.

Fast-paced and peppered with cute visual gags, Monsters Vs Aliens is a blast from eye-popping start to uproarious finish, especially in cinemas projecting in jaw-dropping 3D.

There are sufficient flashes of invention and a smattering of heartfelt emotion to bring a tear to the eye.

The opening section delivers one wow moment after the next as the camera drifts through space towards Earth, descending on a research facility where a scientist plays with an elasticated bat and ball (which appears to bounce out of the screen in 3D), just as an unidentified flying object hurtles towards California.

The object — a green, glowing meteorite — lands on fun-loving Susan Murphy (voiced by Witherspoon) on her wedding day, shortly before she is due to tie the knot to TV weatherman Derek Dietl (Rudd). Before he has a chance to say “I do”, Susan grows in size until she stands an impressive 49 feet and 11 inches tall.

Wedding guests flee and Susan is held hostage by the military in a secret government compound where she learns that other so-called monsters have suffered a similar fate.

In a freakish twist, megalomaniac alien Gallaxhar (Wilson) dispatches a giant alien probe to Earth to retrieve the fallen meteorite.

The metallic monster easily repels every missile and bomb in the military’s arsenal so President Hathaway (Colbert) reluctantly issues an executive order to free the monsters and set them upon the invader from another planet.