The Secret of Kells

The Secret of Kells is set in ninth-century Ireland, where twelve-year-old Brendan lives in the fortified abbey of Kells under the strict rule of his uncle, Abbot Cellach. The monks labor to build walls against feared Viking raids, but Brendan is drawn instead to the arrival of Brother Aidan, a master illuminator who carries an unfinished, wondrous book. Aidan takes the boy under his wing and teaches him the art of illumination, in which Brendan shows remarkable talent. To complete the book's final pages, Brendan must leave the abbey for the first time, venturing into an enchanted forest filled with dangerous mythical creatures, and he finds an ally in Aisling, a young forest spirit.

The film is an animated fantasy directed by Tomm Moore and Nora Twomey, both of whom made their feature debut here; Moore went on to direct Song of the Sea and Wolfwalkers, while Twomey later directed The Breadwinner and My Father's Dragon. Fabrice Ziolkowski wrote the screenplay, and the voice cast includes Evan McGuire as Brendan, Christen Mooney as Aisling, Brendan Gleeson as Abbot Cellach and Mick Lally as Aidan. Produced by Didier Brunner, Viviane Vanfleteren and Paul Young, it was made for about 8 million USD and returned roughly 2 million USD worldwide.

On IMDb it holds 7.5/10 from 37,665 votes, with 7.4/10 on TMDB from 818 votes. A critics' rating of 7.6/10 from 84 reviews places it slightly above the audience scores.