Appreciating you're supposed to cite a name designed to impress people at posh dinner parties when you're asked to name your favourite author, mine was and remains Roald Dahl. As the writer of some of the finest children's books of the past five decades, I'm currently enjoying revisiting many of his works with my own son, and love the darkened edges around many of his stories. The man was, for my money, a flat out genius, and I still live in hope that Guillermo del Toro will get around to doing his animated version of The Witches. That would be close to cinematic heaven from where I'm sitting.

In recent times, the only ones of his books that I've found has led to a satisfying film are Henry Selick's take on James And The Giant Peach (I was no fan of Tim Burton's Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, sadly), and Danny DeVito's Matilda. But I've got a happy eye on the incoming animated version of Fantastic Mr Fox, which is incoming from, suitably, 20th Century Fox.

This isn't your typical computer animated movie, either, as the film's in the hands of Wes Anderson. The same Wes Anderson who made Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums and The Life Aquatic (the latter of which employed the animation skills of Henry Selick).

He's employed stop motion animation and puppetry to bring the film to life, and has roped in many of his regulars to provide the voices - Owen Wilson, Bill Murray, Jason Schwartzman - as well as luring in George Clooney and Meryl Streep too. And as you can see from the trailer, it gives the film a distinction that may or may not serve it well commercially.

The trailer still sells the film hard as a straight down the line family movie (and doesn't actually mention the words Roald and Dahl!), but the guiding hand of Anderson suggests that there might be a little bit more to this one than first appears.

The film is out on 23rd October in the UK (although it's at the London Film Festival on the 14th), and the US release follows on 13th November.