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Techtite's DVD Reviews! |
"One of my favorite Pixar films...and when remembering such films as The Incredibles and Toy Story, that is saying an awful lot!" --from the review ------------- Sidebar :: ------------- No need to Say "Rats!" about these Rats. Is this a fanciful story? Sure...and why not? It's a "fairy tale," to be sure, though certainly not a unique one. Ex-Disney animator Don Bluth's first non-Disney feature film was, after all, The Secret of Nimh, which ironically, was about rats wanting to be more human. Prior to that: Disney tried many times to add a talking animal element, if not a totally human element, to dogs (101 Dalmatians), Cats (Aristocats), monkeys (The Jungle Book), and yes, even a little "Jiminy" cricket (Pinocchio). Let's not forget that little movie that went "Broadway," either, The Lion King. So yeah; this is a film about a talking rat. So what else is new?
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RatatouilleClick picture to order either DVD/Blu-Ray edition!
A Review by TechtiteIt would be belittling a superb Pixar masterpiece, to shrug Ratatouille off as a "rat who wants to be a gourmand" story. Consider how inspired this concept is. What would a rat do if it tasted fine cuisine? Could the rat easily go back to eating garbage? It makes perfect sense that he could not. If Pixar had some whimsical fun with the idea; good for them. If anyone finds the concept too "whimsical": are you new to Disney films? This is the story of Remy the rat (voiced by Patton Oswalt). He's one of those typical cartoon characters who was born with a "gift." That gift is apparently the nose of a bloodhound, since he cannot tolerate bad food. Unfortunately, the only "good" food nearby is in the kitchen of a nearby cottage. Just like all "what a coincidence!" moments in G-rated cinema: the old lady who lives in that cottage always falls asleep with the TV on, during a French cooking show. Remy starts to imitate what he sees on the screen, adding a dash of cinnamon here and a touch of vanilla there, to whatever food scraps he can find. Little does Remy know it, but his "nose" for good cuisine is making him a chef...so to speak. After an abrupt (and outrageously hilarious) ouster from the old lady's home, Remy is separated from his "family" of rats, and must find a different place to live. Luckily, he's a rat in Paris, so he seeks out the flashy French restaurant owned by the chef he saw on TV. In a sequence of events (and very funny visual gags) too complicated to list in one review, Remy is spotted by a clumsy chef wannabe, named Linguini (Lou Romano). Linguini wants to be a good chef, yet can't. Remy is a good chef, yet, well...he's a rat. The two concoct a bizarre plan to help one another; Remy will be the brains, Linguini will be the brawn. Yet how will they keep their little scam away from the prying eyes of the head chef? Loads of story arcs add to the fun. Head chef Skinner (Ian Holm) is convinced something is amiss, and will stop at nothing to discover the truth. In the meantime, Linguini has fallen head over heals for a young female chef named Colette (Janeane Garofalo), who he wants to be closer to, yet can't risk her discovering Remy. The tension comes to a boil when Remy's old pals track him down...though which will win out: Remy's friends wanting him to be a "rat" again, or Remy's desire to bring great cuisine to his fellow rats? So many parts of this movie I loved. It would be impossible to list them all in one review. I loved the slapstick humor when Remy first enters the restaurant kitchen. I loved the attention to detail in Remy (you will unquestionably look differently at rats after seeing this movie). I also loved the subtle G-rated romance between Linguini and Colette. In an amusing moment, Remy is trying to keep Linguini from getting fired, while Linguini has fallen asleep. Remy is able to keep Linguini on his feet, yet when Colette starts a conversation with him, she sees his blank expression as a cold gesture, and slaps him in the face. The look Linguini has, upon awakening to a slap in the face, is simply hilarious. It's just one of many jokes that had me laughing out loud in this movie. However, my favorite moments by far are the ones involving Skinner's quest to find this rat he keeps seeing near Skinner. Much like Dr. Bellows on I Dream of Jeannie, or perhaps Chief Inspector Dreyfus in the Pink Panther movies, Skinner clearly feels he's the only sane person in the room, yet winds up becoming the brunt of every joke, almost to the point of insanity. Not unlike Bellows or Dreyfus, however, Skinner isn't a rubber-stamp "villain," exactly. He's too funny a character for that. If he needs to learn that sometimes a job doesn't have to be done "his way," that's what Remy and Linguini will teach him. If this story has one miniscule flaw, it's how admittedly elaborate a story it is. The finale in particular ---which I won't spoil here, so don't worry--- is truly amazing yet admittedly flawed at the same time. You can probably imagine around a dozen endings to this story in the time it takes for you to watch this film. Let me tell you: none of the finales you imagine can compare to the one they chose. It pulls out all the stops. That's part of its charm, though it's also its flaw. It takes "can you top this?" to a whole new animated level. All I can say in my own "finale" to this review is: if you miss out on Ratatouille, you're missing out on a gem. This summer sees the return of superheroes and the premiere of giant robot cars. It also sees Pixar's return to its excellent storytelling roots. Aside from another sequel to Toy Story ---or a sequel to Incredibles, for that matter--- I can't think of a more perfect Disney/Pixar movie this summer.
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