Paulie has moments of minor charm but lacks the magic to fully capture the imaginations of either children or adults.

Shalhoub gives an impressively nuanced performance in the dangerously cliched role, and Paulie -- a combination of trained parrots, animatronics, and the voice of Mohr -- comes across as a fully developed character.

A perfect family movie with the intelligence, humor and hug-me moments to be a great first-date movie, too. Just remember to bring a hankie.

Talking bird on a coming-of-age journey with some peril.