DINOSAURS are cool, yeah? Dinosaurs are exciting and scary, yeah? Well not according to Disney.

Dinosaur (PG) has to be one of the dullest movies of all time, writes Richard King. The first five minutes are promising enough, but once the dinos start talking it's all downhill.

No real plot, the thinnest sliver of a storyline, no character development and precious little action.

Even the CGI is well below par. The film's attempt at realism is undermined by the overly cartoon-like appearance of the dinosaurs, and some of the rendering is downright dodgy with the combination of CGI and photographic landscapes far from seamless.

Honestly, even the kids yawned through this one. It's a great shame really. There were some good ideas along the way, but even the few moments of action suffered from a seen-it-all-before syndrome. A meteor shower starts as a clever, almost scary, experience but simply becomes a headlong dash towards a cliff face overlooking the ocean without the slightest hint of originality. Dinosaur fights are similarly executed, the outcomes always a forgone conclusion. It's all pretty much Disney by numbers.

The script is awful, the characters either irritating or instantly forgettable, and the overall production values are surprisingly low .

The kids will probably want to go see it any way and, if they do, you have my deepest sympathy. Roll on Jurassic Park 3. Hopefully Spielberg can prevent dinosaur movies from becoming extinct.