You can't teach an old dog new tricks.

The belated sequel to the high-octane 2001 family comedy lacks so much of the sense of fun that made the original film a blast.

Noticeably, Cats And Dogs: The Revenge Of Kitty Galore relies on digital effects much more heavily than its predecessor including a Blofeld-esque villainess who strokes a white mouse.

Real animals performing the stunts are charming because we appreciate the effort involved in each element of the trick.

There's nothing remarkable about a pair of computer generated cat assassins performing somersaults to the whims of a team of animators.

It all starts so well with a Bond-style credits sequence to the strains of Shirley Bassey's rendition of Get The Party Started.

After years in hiding, Kitty Galore (voiced by Midler) breaks cover to steal valuable technology which she needs to construct a device that will get rid of the pesky dogs once and for all.

Lou (Harris) and his covert team of canine super agents are soon on the case and they induct clumsy police dog Diggs (Marsden) into their ranks to work alongside veteran Butch (Nolte) to save the day.

A pigeon called Seamus (Williams) provides clues to Kitty Galore's dastardly plan but to defeat the mad moggy, the dogs have to join forces with agents from MEOWS (Mousers Enforcing Our World Safety).

With the clock ticking until doomsday, the two species unite in the fight against Kitty's evil antics, even paying a visit to criminal master cat Mr Tinkles (Hayes) in his cell and ask him for help to get inside Kitty's twisted mind.

Cats And Dogs: The Revenge Of Kitty Galore goes through the motions, stringing together big action sequences with pun-laden dialogue.

There's no dramatic tension – not once do we believe that Kitty has a hope of realising her deranged vision – and vocal performances are flat, apart from Williams who quickly grates as a wise-cracking pigeon, who could do us all a favour and end up baked in a pie.

Damon Smith