Though the tides may change, early reviews of Shark Tale hint that the movie may not be quite as good as most animation fans had hoped. Variety [paid subscription required] remarks, “Overfamiliarity extends to the story, jokes and music, most of which reference popular entertainment of about 30 years ago,” while Empire Movies says, “Even without the inevitable comparisons to Finding Nemo, this movie isn’t nearly as good as it wants to be.” Meanwhile, Moviepie.com, via Rotten Tomatoes, deduces, “There are brief showings of a good film, somewhere under the animation’s shiny veneer in the chemistry between the actors, but the stilted dialogue and familiar story get in the way.” Shark Tale opens in theaters on October 1, 2004.