Storks have always delivered babies from their Stork Mountain. It was a sacred duty until 18 years ago when Jasper tried to raise orphan Tulip after a botched delivery. Leader Hunter (Kelsey Grammar) stopped delivering babies and started delivering packages. The storks are now delivering for Cornerstore.com. Hunter promises Junior (Andy Samberg) to be the future boss if he fires Tulip who is a constant headache. Junior takes pity and keeps Tulip in the abandoned part of the facility to head up the non-existent letters department. Nate Gardner wants to have a baby sibling. He writes a letter to the storks which generates a baby from the Baby Making Machine. Junior is injured and must join Tulip in flying an old flying machine to deliver the adorable baby.

The setup and the story is too complicated for this simple animated movie. The characters are suitably cute and lovely. It lacks a compelling villain and the plot rambles around. Ultimately, it's a brightly-colored but boring adventure. The character construction is solid but the writing needs help. Kids may like some of the wacky colorful fun but it's not much more than that.

Storks no longer deliver babies. They have a large warehouse not named Amazon, where they deliver packages and hopefully life won't imitate art. Tulip, is a undelivered human who works there and messes things up. Her most recent error is to process a baby delivery which involves a long perilous formula trek.

The theme once again is family and friends, give up that electronic device to bond with your kid(s). The kids seemed to like the film, while I had a hard time getting into the characters, finding Tulip's situation sad as were her cute antics as in talking to herself. The film had some funny moments, mostly for the kids.

'Storks' will never be up there with the greatest animated films, which have more focused plots, humour of more consistent quality balanced with great emotional power and for some a dark and daring element. However, 'Storks' is also a long way from being one of the worst.

The biggest problem with 'Storks' is the story. It definitely has its moments, but things do get over-complicated and chaotic, predictability is high in the second act and the pacing is erratic with a couple of parts lacking momentum and some so hyperactive that you don't have much time to process before having to keep up again.

While most of 'Storks' is incredibly entertaining, the laughs are not consistent, some of them in the second act being repetitive and laboured, a couple also try too hard and feel forced as a result. One character doesn't come off very well, and that's Pidgeon Toady, who is meant to be funny but is far too over-the-top and annoying.

However, the visuals are spectacularly beautiful. The colours are incredibly rich, the backgrounds are rich in imagination and detail and the characters are all modelled well. The soundtrack is infectious and upbeat but also dynamic and with some tender understated pathos at the end. The dialogue is on the silly side but there are some amusingly witty moments. The sight gags are much more memorable, with the multi-tasking wolf pack being an absolute hoot and the silent penguin fight being every bit as hilarious.

For 'Storks' to work, the relationship between the central characters has to come off well. Luckily, Junior and Tulip's chemistry is both fun and heartfelt and dealt with in a sympathetic way. So it was easy to root for them, particularly Tulip who is essentially the heart of the film. The babies are simply adorable, and the last act more than makes up for the predictable and fragmented (in execution of the humour) middle act. The climax is exciting and the ending is incredibly touching. What 'Storks' also does very well is how much it has to say on family life and the execution of its message never feels forced or over-didactic.

Voice acting is very good on the whole, especially Andy Samberg, Katie Crown and Danny Trejo. Kelsey Grammar also does a very good job, suave and articulate-sounding as ever, if a somewhat predictable casting choice, think a less mid-Atlantic Sideshow Bob and you know what to expect. The only exception is Stephen Kramer Glickman who overdoes it dreadfully as Toady.

On the whole, messy but enjoyable with a strong emotional core. It is a bright and breezy diversion, with some inspired humorous moments and a genuinely touching ending, but kids and adults alike will find trying to keep up with, or completely understanding, the plot a bit of an endeavour. 7/10 Bethany Cox