Children and parents alike will be pleased to meet the Robinsons in Disney's latest animated adventure.

Particularly compelling in 3-D, Meet the Robinsons is a visual treat with an engaging story that has an uplifting, but not maudlin, message.

The story centers on bespectacled 12-year-old orphan Lewis (voiced by Daniel Hansen) who was left on the steps of an orphanage run by the kindly Mildred (Angela Bassett).

His smarts are evident in his obsession with science and inventions. He longs to be part of a family, so he decides to build a time machine so he can go back to his infancy and meet his mother.

As he prepares to demonstrate his invention at the science fair, he is waylaid by friendly teenager Wilbur Robinson (Wesley Singerman), who whisks him off to a strange and wondrous place: the future. Lewis is enlisted to help Wilbur and finds himself off on a wonderful adventure with Wilbur's eccentric and fascinating family.
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Both the gregarious Robinson family and Lewis' efforts to help Wilbur lead him to a powerful life lesson: Keep moving forward and avoid getting mired in the past.

Meet the Robinsons is the kind of whimsical G-rated escapist fare that parents with school-age kids yearn for. (A funny gag involving a character voiced by Tom Selleck particularly will amuse.)

The movie is inventive and fun with a significant message that manages not to be overbearing. There are some heart-tugging — but not sappy — moments involving Lewis' lonely yearning for a family. The overall message is not to look back or waste time longing for what you can't or no longer have: Keep moving forward and make the best of what is around you.

Meet the Robinsons is a fanciful ride that is sweet, entertaining and amusing. And though the story is rather slight, there is still significant excitement. Though it's not exactly The Secret, the way this simple message is presented feels refreshingly sincere.