Starring: voices of Gary Oldman, Jessayln Gilsig Directed by: Frederik Du Chau Length: 80 minutes Rated: G Jack's rating: 6

(May 15, 1998) -- A girl as hero is Quest for Camelot's major contribution to the endless mythology of King Arthur and the Round Table.

The lush new cartoon details how the young daughter of a late, lamented knight saves Camelot by battling an evil lord for Excalibur, Arthur's magical sword.

Though created by Warner Bros. -- the studio of Bugs Bunny and the Road Runner -- Quest for Camelot features the orchestral music and fully rounded animation more familiar to Disney fans. The feature has much more in common with Pocahontas than with What's Opera, Doc? or Space Jam.

Disney had its turn with a Camelot cartoon in 1963's The Sword and the Stone, which took a more conventional, albeit charming, approach to the material.

Quest for Camelot is, in some ways, a sequel. Arthur has risen to power, the Round Table is in place and peace reigns in the kingdom. But a greedy, envious knight named Ruber tries to steal Excalibur and take over the throne. The fabled sword, though, is lost in a darkly mysterious forest, and the race is on to retrieve it.

That's when young Kayley gets her long-awaited chance to prove herself a knight. Not content to be a "damsel in distress," she's a take-charge young woman who wants to fight her own battles. Helping her is a blind recluse from the forest, along with a wacky, two-headed dragon (who provides comic relief).

Evil Ruber also has his cohorts -- a squad of nitwits who turn magically into giant warriors, like some sort of silly, medieval "transformers."

Except for a few anachronistic sight gags, Quest for Camelot looks great -- with a lovely visual style influenced by the famous N.C. Wyeth King Arthur illustrations. The plot starts strong, but becomes more and more predictable and lackluster as the finale approaches.

The film's music credits, though, are top-shelf, with likable songs from David Foster and Carole Bayer Sager, and a robust score from Patrick Doyle (composer for Kenneth Branagh's Shakespeare films).

The voice talent ranges from adequate (Jessalyn Gilsig as Kayley, Gary Oldman as the villain) to amusing (Eric Idle and Don Rickles as the dragon's two feuding heads).

And although the film offers few reminders of its proud Warner Bros. heritage, at least the villain shops where Bugs and the Coyote shop: The label on a bottle of magic potion is clearly marked "Acme."