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An underwater adventure is about as natural a setting as possible for the folks at Pixar, the animation geniuses who have yet to have a film be considered a miss. So far, the studio's agreement with Walt Disney Pictures has been very lucrative, setting CGI as the new standard for animated movies with a successful line of films that includes Toy Story, A Bug's Life, Toy Story 2 and Monsters, Inc. Since those films have raised the bar both for quality animation and story, audiences have come to expect much more from their toon movies.

It's certainly good news that Finding Nemo is directed and written by Andrew Stanton, who previously directed A Bug's Life but also had at least a hand in writing all of the earlier Pixar films. John Lasseter, the genius who started things with his wonderful creation of the worlds in A Bug's Life and the Toy Story films, is also present as producer. A definite divergence from the other Pixar films is that Thomas Newman is doing the original music this time around instead of cousin Randy Newman (hey, he's got his Oscar now).

As is already evidenced from the delightful trailer, the movie is colorful and bright, set in the warm tropical waters of the Great Barrier Reef just outside of Australia. A Clownfish named Marlin (Albert Brooks) lives peacefully in these waters with his only son, Nemo. Marlin is afraid of the bigger expanse of the ocean and chooses to stay in a tiny cul-de-sac, but Nemo is young and adventuresome and goes off to explore. He is suddenly taken far away from home and put into a tank at a dentist's office, and Marlin goes on an epic journey to rescue his child. Marlin is joined by a Regal Blue Tang fish named Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) with horrible short-term memory and a huge heart. The two make their way through the dangerous ocean and find the courage to face their fears as they attempt their search-and-recovery mission.

In addition to the fine voices of Brooks and DeGeneres (who both sound perfect for their roles in the trailer), Finding Nemo features an outstanding voice cast with plenty of recognizable names. Willem Dafoe, Brad Garrett, Allison Janney, Vicki Lewis, Stephen Root, Geoffrey Rush, Erik Per Sullivan and Pixar veteran John Ratzenberger all have parts to play.

Finding Nemo will be released over the lucrative Memorial Day weekend, a time of year that propelled the similarly CGI-animated Shrek to huge heights during the summer of 2001. Pixar is as close to a trusted "brand" as can be found in the movie industry, and this new project is sure to benefit from a long-term summer audience. (Kim Hollis/BOP)

Vital statistics for Finding Nemo Main Cast Albert Brooks, Ellen DeGeneres Supporting Cast Erica Beck, Willem Dafoe, Brad Garrett, Allison Janney, Vicki Lewis, John Ratzenberger, Stephen Root, Geoffrey Rush, Erik Per Sullivan Director Andrew Stanton Screenwriter Andrew Stanton Distributor Walt Disney Pictures Trailer Click Here for Trailer Official Site http://www.findingnemo.com/ Rating G Running Time 100 minutes Screen Count 3,374 Also see Finding Nemo Awards Awards page for Finding Nemo Talent in red has entry in The Big Picture

Comparison films for Finding Nemo
Title	Date	Opening	Adjusted Opening	Screens	PSA	Adj PSA	Total BO	Adjusted Total	Mult
Monsters, Inc.	11/2/01	63.48	67.75	3237	19611.00	20131.6	255.87	273.09	4.03
Toy Story 2	11/24/99	57.39	68.39	3236	17735.00	20248.6	245.82	292.94	3.05
Ice Age	3/15/02	46.30	48.13	3316	13966.00	13966.0	176.39	183.39	3.81
Shrek	5/18/01	42.35	45.20	3587	11805.00	12118.4	267.65	285.66	6.32
Lilo & Stitch	6/21/02	35.26	36.65	3191	11049.00	11049.0	145.77	151.55	4.13
Bug's Life, A	11/25/98	32.83	42.20	2686	12223.00	15115.9	162.79	209.29	3.56
Toy Story	11/24/95	29.14	40.39	2457	11860.00	15813.3	191.78	265.84	4.90