I personally have always enjoyed Spade's sarcastic brand of humor. He's the snotty teenager who always seems to get the last word, even if he's being severely beaten by the school bully. They somehow manage to animate both the Emperor and the llama he plays to match his persona exactly, and the results can be hillarious.
Another plus: nary a song to be found. Ok, well, like one in the beginning and one to end it all, but the core of the movie is all plot. Don't get me wrong, I have loved some of Disney's music, but lately, in my opinion, it has felt more like a filler I must endure to get to the rest of the movie. I loved the music in both Toy Story movies, but before that I have to go back to Aladdin and The Little Mermaid to find Disney soundtracks I really enjoyed.
I don't want to give the other voices away because trying to figure who is doing which voice was fun (Cathy got them all). Cathy may give them all away but I hope she starts with a spoiler warning or something. It should suffice to say that everyone was really good and you should recognize at least one other voice, if not three or four.
Another thing: Both my kids were almost totally still during this movie. They watched the whole thing. I mean, oh my god. I guess you don't fully appreciate what this means, but - oh my god. Both my daughter and I laughed a lot during this movie. My son, who is four, laughed a couple times, but I think a lot of the humor was over his head. He still seemed to really enjoy the movie. He watched it almost unblinkingly.
The plot is a standard Disney formula, but that sort of thing doesn't usually bother me from Disney. They have a good formula. :)
4 1/2 stars.
--David