BE SURE TO STALK 'DUMA' WITH THE ENTIRE FAMILY.

Byline: Glenn Whipp Film Critic

'DUMA,'' Carroll Ballard's beautiful wildlife adventure tale, arrives in Los Angeles today, following a long and winding road that has taken the movie to several other cities while Warner Bros. tweaks its marketing campaign.

But this is a movie that needs no special sell. If you're one of those people who complains long and loud about Hollywood forsaking family films, then stop your squawking, buy a ticket and write a thank-you note. That way, maybe someone will let Ballard make another movie.

Ballard previously directed ``The Black Stallion,'' ``Never Cry Wolf'' and ``Fly Away Home.'' ``Duma'' is very much in that same vein, an intimate story of a child and a wild animal told against an epic backdrop. It manages to tug your heart without ever becoming saccharine and quicken your pulse without stooping to cheap thrills and over-the-top violence.

The animal in ``Duma'' is a cheetah, initially a baby, found by 12-year-old Xan (Alexander Michaletos) and his father (Campbell Scott) near their farm in South Africa. The family, which includes a very understanding mom (Hope Davis), nurses the cheetah to health and adulthood, knowing full well that some day the animal must be returned to the wild.

Sending the cat (named Duma, which is Swahili for cheetah) back home proves more complicated than thought, and involves another unlikely friendship, this time between Xan and a drifter named Ripkuna (marvelously played by Eamonn Walker). As the movie slowly unfolds, Xan and Ripkuna deepen their friendship and mutual respect - for each other and, of course, their elegant animal pal.

The simple story affords Ballard another opportunity to make good on his reputation as a visually poetic storyteller, and he doesn't disappoint, delivering a series of stunning sequences against the South African desert.

Ballard doesn't overdo the cuteness (and the cheetah cub is impossibly adorable) earlier in the film, and he doesn't soft-pedal the dangers when they present themselves. His pitch-perfect adventure will engage your imagination, no matter your age.

Glenn Whipp, [phone]

glenn.whipp(at)dailynews.com

DUMA - Three and one half stars

(PG: mild adventure peril)

Starring: Alexander Michaletos, Campbell Scott, Hope Davis.

Director: Carroll Ballard.

Running time: 1 hr. 40 min.

Playing: In wide release.

In a nutshell: Another outstanding, epic adventure from the man behind ``The Black Stallion.'' Take the family.

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Photo:

Out for a spin are 12-year-old Xan (Alexander Michaletos) and the young cheetah his family rescued in South Africa in ``Duma.''