“Barnyard” is a sweet and funny film about farm animals who become party animals when humans aren’t looking.
A cow named Ben (voiced by Sam Elliot) is the boss of the farm and he protects everyone from the coyotes. Ben has an adopted son named Otis (nicely voiced by Kevin James) who is the farm’s #1 party animal. But soon Otis is forced to learn to follow in his father’s hoof steps and become a leader.
There are plenty of big laughs in “Barnyard”, such as when Otis and three Jersey Cows borrow a car and go “boy tipping.” But there are also some serious and even sad moments, very surprising for an animated movie about talking animals.
Other celebrity voices include Wanda Sykes and Courtney Cox, who play two female cows new to the farm, and Danny Glover who voices Miles, a wise, old mule.
“Barnyard” is rated PG. The scenes involving the coyote attacks could be too scary for younger viewers (say, under 6). And the sad scenes will likely get to everybody, even adults.
On The Official Kid Critic Report Card, “Barnyard” gets a B. Kids remember – no driving until you’re 16 and never ride in a car with a cow.