Monday 10 August 2009

Film Review: RATATOUILLE (2007)


Directors: Brad Bird and Jan Pinkava (co-director)
Running time: 111 mins (approx)
Certificate (UK): U

Watched on Sky+ Sunday 9th August 2009.

PLEASE NOTE: POSSIBLE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

This was a breath of fresh air, I liked it a lot. A well conceived, well written and excellently executed script, it was all you could ask of a modern Disney animated feature. When required, the rats looked like rats, the people looked like people and even the cars fitted the Paris backdrop (I know because I’ve been there). Here’s a summary.

Remy is a rat, the furry kind with a bald tail, and, as you might guess, he’s a rat who has a talent for food. Having been inspired by Chef Gusteau while watching TV, he finds himself in Paris at Gusteau’s restaurant. Unfortunately Chef Gusteau has passed away and the kitchen is now being run by Skinner, a small man with ambitious to own the restaurant. Gusteau’s illegitimate son, Linguini, gets a job as a garbage boy, but finds himself befriended by Remy when he accidentally ruins the soup and Remy fixes it. They discover a way that Remy can control Linguini’s actions and he gets a reputation for excellent cooking. Then Remy discovers the papers that prove the restaurant really belongs to Linguini and Skinner is displaced. As you might imagine, the plot gets kind of exciting from here on in, particularly if we throw in Remy’s estranged family, a scary food critic and Colette, a fellow chef and girlfriend of Linguini.

An extremely well made film, with an enjoyable plot, great dialogue and great animation by Pixar. Excellent performances from the voice talents of Patton Oswalt as Remy, Lou Romano as Linguini, Ian Holm as Skinner, Brian Dennehy as Django, Peter O'Toole as Anton Ego (the food critic) and Janeane Garofalo as Colette. Over all, great all round family entertainment and I highly recommend it!

My score: 8/10

LINKS:
IMDb Site: http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0382932/
Official Site: http://disney.go.com/disneyvideos/animatedfilms/ratatouille/

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