'Walking with Dinosaurs: The 3D Movie' is entertaining yet educational, according to John Leguizamo.

The actor, who voices bird-like Alexornis dinosaur Alex in the new movie, was thoroughly impressed by the original BBC documentary series the new fictional movie is based on and feels it has captured some of the informational aspects of the Emmy Award-winning show.

He said: ''The beautiful thing about 'Walking with Dinosaurs' is that you're learning precise information about them. There was no detail left to chance or to the imagination and there was no loose fact checking. It is very scientific.

''The dinosaurs are not cute, cuddly, furry creatures. They look real. The kids are going to be educated, while also being entertained.

''The film is funny and a little bit scary. You need a little bit of scariness. Dinosaurs were scary. Children like that; they don't want the story to be totally cute. You want it to have teeth, and the film's got teeth.''

Leguizamo was blown away by BBC's 1999 miniseries 'Walking with Dinosaurs', which used computer-generated imagery to bring the prehistoric creatures to life, and even wondered whether the footage was real.

He added: ''It was incredible; you just couldn't believe what you were watching. It blew me away. It looked like actual documentary footage about dinosaurs. I began watching during the middle of an episode and I was like, 'Oh my God, where did they get this footage on dinosaurs? Who was around at that time?' ''

'Walking with Dinosaurs: The 3D Movie' is in cinemas now.