An arrogant Emperor is transformed into a llama by his once trusted advisor and is forced out of his home. He forms an alliance with a peasant and together they embark on an adventure to return the Emperor to his human form.

I don’t really expect much from Disney’s lesser known 2D animated films. Since LION KING, most of them have been pretty forgettable. I wouldn’t say this is an exception, but it is a funny movie that provides enough laughs to keep adults and children amused for the entire runtime.

NEW GROOVE excels in the humor department, but it lacks a little in the emotional areas. There’s nothing that really stands out as being touching and it’s hard to get involved with the characters as much as we do with other Disney films. That’s why, despite its humor, it failed to follow the lead of other successful Disney products. The characters are shallow and although they learn their lesson at the end, we don’t get the kind of moral instruction that Disney likes to include in their movies. So of course, if you can’t learn morals from a movie, where are you supposed to go?

David Spade and Patrick Warburton shine through with their voice work. I’m a big Patrick Warburton fan and I think he has one of the best cartoon voices in the business. David Spade turns in one of his best performances post TOMMY BOY and pre Capitol One commercials. Spade delivers lines very well and so it only makes sense that he would excel with a voiceover.

Video: Anamorphic Widescreen (1.66:1): Animated movies usually make a cleaner transfer since the source is cleaner. This is no exception and it looks great.

Audio: English Dolby Digital 5.1, English DTS 5.1, French Dolby Digital 2.0, with English, Spanish, French subtitles: The DTS track is a joy to listen to although the movie doesn’t really require the luxury of DTS. When it is used, the sound comes through crystal clear.

I went off on my MASK OF ZORRO review about how much I hate triple-dipping from studios, so I won’t repeat myself. Just know I’m not pleased. However, I will mention that there are deleted scenes on this release that don’t appear on any other releases.

Commentary with Randy Fulmer, Mark Dindal, Colin Stimpson, Joeseph C. Mosheir, Stephen Anderson, Nick Ranieri and Bruce W. Smith: This is not too bad, although it got a little crowded at times and since I don’t know any of these people, I continued to get their voices confused. Overall though, it offered several interesting tidbits about the film and is a recommend for fans of the flick.

Deleted Scenes (12:45): I have a hard time getting into a deleted scene that’s basically drawn on a piece of scratch paper. Disney includes a lot of these with their releases. I understand it’s not cost effective to finish them, and a part of me is glad they’re there, but I just can’t get the full effect if they’re not complete.

Behind the Scenes (8:59): This is a collection of three segments covering research, voices, and CGI. It’s geared towards those of us that haven’t completed grade school, so you won’t find anything overly thrilling.

The Emperor’s Got Game: This is a game designed for kids, although, admittedly, I played it. The object is to answer questions about the movie to get Kuzco through the maze.

There are also Photo Galleries, Trailers and Music Videos from the Rascal Flatts and Sting.

If you want an enjoyable movie to watch with a younger audience, then NEW GROOVE will be an enjoyable film, but don’t expect TOY STORY. It’ll keep you laughing and it holds up well with repeated viewings.