The British animation of "Freddy" certainly pales in comparison to the lush Japanese animation of "Little Nemo." The latter film also boasts a fantasy tale that children will enjoy more and parents will find less offensive.

— "LITTLE NEMO: ADVENTURES IN SLUMBERLAND" is loosely based on Winsor McCay's turn-of-the-century comic strip and early silent animated series.

Here, Nemo is a young boy whose dreams seem to cross over into reality as he is spirited away in his flying bed to Slumberland, a sort of Oz-like fantasy world, which is gorgeously animated. When he arrives, the king names Nemo heir to the throne and he is given a key, with the warning that he must never open a certain door.

At the urging of a comic sidekick, Flip (voiced by Mickey Rooney), Nemo opens the door, of course, letting loose a demon that kidnaps the king and threatens Slumberland with his own Nightmareland. (The demon, by the way, looks quite like the satanic character in Disney's "Night on Bald Mountain" sequence of "Fantasia.")

The rest of the film has Nemo, along with his pet flying squirrel, the king's daughter, Flip and Nemo's mentor, Professor Genius, trying to rescue the king and once more lock up the demon.

Unfortunately, the story and dialogue (which were, in various incarnations scripted by no less than Ray Bradbury and "Home Alone's" Chris Columbus) are not nearly as witty and inventive as the weakest Disney animated feature, which results too often in dull, sluggish sequences.

As a result, "Little Nemo" is strictly for small fry.

— "FREDDIE AS F.R.O.7.," however, is much worse.

A wrong-headed cross between "The Frog Prince" and James Bond, this one has a young French prince turned into a frog by his evil aunt. He grows to be 6 feet tall and joins up with the French Secret Service for what appears to be the first in a series of cartoon adventures. (Reportedly, the first 10 minutes of the next one, "Freddie Goes to Washington" is already completed.)

The plot has a villain, aided by Freddie's aunt, stealing and shrinking English landmarks — the Tower of London, Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, etc. So, it's Freddie to the rescue, with help from British agents Daffers and Scottie, who seem to be oblivious to the fact that Freddie is a 6-foot frog. (They also get help from Nessie, the Loch Ness Monster.)

Music videos ensue, mostly to cover the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles"-style violence, as they battle bad guys and restore the buildings.

In the end, why Freddie remains a frog, especially when he defeats his evil aunt and supposedly has powers every bit as magical as hers, is anyone's guess.

Ben Kingsley, of all people, does Freddie's voice and there are several other high-profile British actors in the voice cast. Alas, their talent can't make up for what is a very weak effort that would be better suited to television.

The main problem is that the James Bond jokes are too sophisticated for young children and the rest is too childish for older kids, much less adults. The film is also surprisingly vulgar in places, as when Daffers has an electronic bug land on her low-cut blouse and Freddie says he has no use for gadgets, adding, "But I like the landing area." A moment later, Daffers opens her blouse to him and says, "Well, I don't have any concealed weapons."

"Freddie As F.R.O.7." is rated PG for violence and vulgarity.