"Never give up something that you love," advises Stanley Irving to his 10-year-old son Yankee after another embarrassing performance at the sandlot baseball game.

It is easy to understand why this story of perseverance attracted actor/director Christopher Reeve to this computer generated animated feature, becoming his final cinematic project before his untimely death last year.

Set in Depression-era 1932 New York City, amidst the hub-bub of Babe Ruth, the Yankees and their race to win the World Series against the Chicago Cubs (yes, that DID really happen), "Everyone’s Hero" is a smorgasbord of characters and plot points¾ with an eye perhaps toward being everyone’s movie by covering all the bases. Ouch!

Will the notion of Babe Ruth be lost on children? Will they get the sly allusion to the Babe’s penchant for nightlife and women when Yankee tracks his hero in a fancy NY restaurant with a blonde on his arm? As the camera focuses on the 1932 team roster including names like Gehrig, Grimes, Rolfe and Murphy, will the kids squirm and run to the concession stands?

Maybe the historic tidbits are meant for the parents; but aren’t they too young to remember this as well? And will anyone be insulted that the Chicago Cubs’ beleaguered owner is the villain here? Do we really want to be reminded of a long-ago Cubs World Series visit—which they lost to the Yankees? But I digress….

"Everyone’s Hero" tells an admirable tale of an avid baseball fan who travels from NYC to Chicago to deliver Babe Ruth’s stolen baseball bat, and to restore his father’s job and reputation.

Based on a story writer Robert Kurtz fabricated as a bedtime ritual for his children, this computer generated feature adds the wit and wisdom of a talking baseball and bat to the mix. Voiced by Rob Reiner and Whoopi Goldberg respectively, their clever jibes grab the kids’ attention but the content of their comments are aimed strictly at the older crowd. The bat claims to have been "made by unicorns on Mount Olympus" and the ball counters that he is made from "Seabiscuit and stitched by Betsy Ross." There are asides about Chicago’s deep dish pizza, mimes, the Hope diamond, Eleanor Roosevelt, J. Edgar Hoover and even a rendition of the classic "Chicago.That Toddlin’ Town." Funny stuff, but I could not help feeling uneasy about the filmmakers’ missed opportunity to really address the children in the audience.

Yet the warmth and the excitement of the adventure do carry the film. When Yankee discovers that the Cubs’ pitcher Lefty (voiced expertly by William H. Macy) has stolen the Babe’s bat, he and Screwie the talking baseball set out on a journey to recover the slugger’s lucky charm. (Here’s hoping that all Cubs pitchers aren’t overly sensitive since Lefty is portrayed as a nose picking, feet smelling, fingernail biting, and earwax fisher. Yuck…as if this 2006 season hasn’t been bad enough…)

Besides the jabbering ball and bat, it’s the chase that will hold the kids’ attention here. With Lefty hot on Yankee’s trail as the youngster tries to make his way with the bat to Wrigley Field for the final game of the World Series and rescue the Babe from his slump, the pursuit involves an exciting marathon through the train’s cars.

Of course the story’s finale twists the historic facts a notch but all is fair in CGI-land and its fairy tale ending. Suffice it to say that Yankee gets to stare down Lefty before a crowd of thousands and Screwie rises to new heights.

"Everyone’s Hero" manages to relay strong family values—the bond between a father and son as well as the virtue of never giving up—and that makes this a sweet film. Side characters like the out-of-work bums and the black Negro league players who help Yankee on his journey spotlight the historic elements of the era with cleverness and good humor.

Whether any of these historic nuances will make a dent in the minds of children remains to be seen. I am betting on the talking bat and ball and Lefty’s smelly feet.

This much is certain: White Sox fans will relish this one.