《勇敢的心》之猫头鹰版：《守卫者传奇》

“Legend of the Guardians: The Owls* of Ga’Hoole” is the kids’ version of “Braveheart” with owls — a dark and dense tale filled with noble warriors*, mighty clashes* and feathers flying.

It is directed by Zack Snyder. The magnificent arcing* swoops* and spins of the owls achieved by the animation team (the folks behind “Happy Feet”) make such good use of the 3-D technology you can almost feel the pure freedom and joy of flight.

But there’s a confusion* that you can feel as well, with the film pulled between its light and dark sides just as the owls struggle with forces of good and evil.

Adapted by John Orloff and Emil Stern from the first three in the children’s 15-book series “Guardians of Ga’Hoole” by Kathryn Lasky, the central characters are Soren ( Jim Sturgess) and Kludd ( Ryan Kwanten), brothers at increasingly lethal* Cain and Abel* odds. They are barn owls, commoners within the owl community, with their heart-shaped faces.

The central tension of the film is set up when Soren and Kludd are kidnapped* after falling from the nest when they attempt to fly while the parents are out picking up some mice for dinner.

It turns out that young owl abductions are on the rise, with evil marauders* called the Pure Ones trying to build a slave army of owl chicks. The Pure Ones have world domination* in mind, with a bitter general, a black owl named Metal Beak ( Joel Edgerton) and a snow white sorceress* named Nyra ( Helen Mirren) stirring up a bad brew.

With the stage set, young Soren begins that important quest* to find the mythic protectors of all things good, the Guardians, the warrior owls of Ga’Hoole he learned about at his father’s knee. And there is his even tougher journey from innocent* owlet into an adult who trusts his gizzard*, which we learn is how one takes the measure of* an owl.

The animation itself is beautiful, as is the ancient owl world it imagines. The battles are complex and, in true Snyder tradition, heavy on the action. The flying sequences are breathtaking, though like plane trips they go on too long. (SD-Agencies)