A well-upholstered ginger cat, a team of talking rats and a slightly half-baked human team up to extort pest control fees from a series of villages. But the self-described “amazing Maurice” (voiced with flamboyant affectation by Hugh Laurie) is a cat with a devious plan: he has no intention of sharing the ill-gotten gains with his rodent colleagues. However, when peril looms, in the form of a “rat king” in the town of Bad Blintz, Maurice belatedly discovers loyalty to his squeaky buddies.

Adapted from the book by Terry Pratchett, this perky computer-animated adventure leans a little heavily on its meta self-aware storytelling devices (expect numerous fourth-wall-smashing to camera asides), but it’s a fun, if slightly macabre option for family audiences.

• In cinemas and on Sky Cinema