This brief feature (only 62 minutes) mixes characters and situations borrowed from various shorts that Tex Avery, William Hanna, and Joseph Barbera made at MGM during the 1940s and early '50s. Yet director James Tim Walker lacks the razor-sharp timing of his models. When a young wizard leaves Tom to guard his magic ring, and Jerry gets the ring stuck on his head, a long series of chases and slapstick confrontations ensue. At times, Walker and writers Tim Cahill and Julie McNally seem to be trying to turn the venerable MGM stars into Itchy and Scratchy (who were modeled after the inferior Tom and Jerry clones from other studios). Magic Ring may amuse small children, but not their older siblings. It feels suspiciously like an attempt to revive Tom and Jerry as a merchandising franchise. Unrated, suitable for ages 5 and older: slapstick cartoon violence. --Charles Solomon