CINEMAS are hoping to bring in the families this week, with only two new releases, but both targeting an all-ages audience.

Mufasa: The Lion King will have its obligatory release prior to becoming available on Disney plus.

A prequel to the 2019 remake “The Lion King”, this film similarly is a photorealistic animated feature, recounting the tale of how a young Mufasa came to build the kingdom of Pride Rock.

While the original “The Lion King” was a global phenomenon that is regarded as one of the Mouse House’s very best, the remake was received tepidly upon release five years ago.

There is clearly enough good will surrounding it though, since the entire voice-cast return for brief roles in this film, alongside the newcomers portraying younger versions of some of the well-known parental characters.

Director, Barry Jenkins, has been vocal in promoting the film, emphasising the important legacy of the original as a story that introduced many young people to Shakespeare, tragedy and the importance of community.

Playing equally well to the nostalgia of parents, but with far more guaranteed laughs, the much-beloved but clueless inventor and his long-suffering dog return to the screen with Wallace and Grommet: Vengeance Most Fowl.

This is going to be a wonderful opportunity to introduce younger children to the delightfully absurd world that was first brought to life by creator Nick Park in 1993 with “The Wrong Trousers”.

Returning along with the title characters, for the first time since that original short, is the diabolical Feathers McGraw.

Filmed in Claymation – a stop-motion format that utilises clay models – this series understandably requires long production periods in order to produce films of any quality.

Aardman entertainment, the company that also produced “Chicken Run”, had a difficult relationship with Dreamworks who produced the 2005 feature “The Curse of the Were-Rabbit”, which resulted in a degree of reluctance to attempt another Wallace and Grommet feature.

Added to this was the complication that Aardman’s preferred supplier of modelling clay closed down in 2023 (fortunately they had already purchased enough to complete the film).

One of the strengths of the Wallace and Grommet series is that the time is taken to ensure every production is completed to the highest standard.

The film will come to Netflix in January, but will be well worth the price of a cinema screening.

By Lindsay HALL