First Look at Zack Snyder's Fantasy Film 'Legend of the Guardians'

How do you follow up the headshot-loving Dawn of the Dead remake, the limb-chopping frenzy of 300, and the adults-only superhero mentality of Watchmen? With a 3D CGI fantasy film for kids, of course! Yep, Zack Snyder is breaking the mold of making violent, blood-spilling films that earn their R rating with Legend of the Guardians, an adaptation of the fantasy series Guardians of Ga'Hoole written by Kathryn Lasky. If, like myself, you have no idea what the source material is about, the above picture of an owl's face might be a little confusing.

The series, which began back in 2003 and ended in 2008 after 15 books, is about a young Barn Owl who gets kidnapped by a group of malicious owls that run an orphanage that brainwashes other young owls into becoming soldiers; soldiers who will then go on to fight the innocent group of Ga'Hoole owls. Now I realize that brief description may sound like a light and fluffy adventure story for kids only, but I think it's safe to say that with Snyder at the helm of a $100 million budget at Warner Brothers (which is only $30mil less than he was given for Watchmen), Legend of the Guardians may be one of the surprise spectacle films of the year.

The release date of September 24th is still a ways off. In the mean time, USA Today has some new stills from the movie, but if you're more into pictures that move about and such, the first teaser trailer is embedded below.