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Another Pixar Masterpiece Anytime Pixar releases a new film, the question is: Have they done it again? They have raised the bar so high with their string of inventive, imaginative, beautifully animated films they are now in competition with themselves. So when "Cars" came out, it was a fun film, but it was no "Toy Story". When I told a co-worker that I had seen the sneak preview of Pixar's newest "Ratatouile", they immediately said, "Don't tell me they did it again?" Yes, they have done it again. "Ratatouile" is a great animated film. It isn't their funniest film, but it is one of their best. It seems like director Brad Bird is trying to create a more film like animated feature. His film just happens to be animated and have talking rats. "Ratatouile" is fantastic. And for many reasons. First and foremost is director Brad Bird. Bird worked for a while on "The Simpsons" and then went on to direct an animated film called "The Iron Giant". "Giant" tells the story of a young boy who finds a robot who looks like he was transported from a 50s Sci-Fi film. Because of this, the film has a decidedly retro look and appears very traditionally animated. As a result, Warner Bros. buried the film and it never achieved the audience it deserved. Then Bird moved on to Pixar and directed "The Incredibles". In one word: Incredible. This was the animated version of a James Bond film and a super hero film all rolled into one. Great characters. Great animation. Great story. "The Incredibles" is one of my favorite films of all time. Now Bird returns with this very different film that shares one similarity. In both cases, Bird seems to be making films that just happen to be animated. He crafts the story and the characters with such remarkable ability, making them appear as though they are human actors. And I think this will help his films transcend and become classics remembered by future generations. The beauty of "Ratatouile" is that it takes our misconceptions, our prejudices and some of the reality of life in Paris, and a gourmet restaurant, and combines them into a very amusing mix. It continues the Pixar tradition of building real worlds, real environments for these characters, making the films a little more genuine in the long run. As with all Pixar films, the animation is stunning, but in "Ratatouile", they have gone even one step further. The backgrounds, the textures, the appliances, Remy's fur, are almost photo realistic. Even the facial expressions and mannerisms of the characters seem real and if they didn't look like cartoon characters, you might think they were human. Remy (comedian Patton Oswalt, who has a lot of television work to his credit) is a rat who lives with his father and the rest of their large clan, in the French countryside. While his father, his brother, Emile (Peter Sohn) and the rest of the clan are happy to eat garbage, Remy aspires to something greater. He sneaks into the cottage of an old woman and learns of a famous chef, Gusteau (Brad Garrett, TV's "Everybody Loves Raymond"). The chef is on the old woman's television set and his bestselling cookbook, "Everyone Can Cook" is on her shelf. Remy steals the cookbook and one thing leads to another and he ends up in Paris. When he arrives at Gusteau's, the famous chef has passed away from heartbreak; one of his famed five stars was recently taken away by the evil food critic, Anton Ego (Peter O'Toole). But the famous chef appears as Remy's alter ego when the rat gets trapped in the kitchen. Linguini (Lou Romano) is hired to be the new garbage boy despite the misgivings of the new head chef Skinner (Ian Holm) who regards the boy suspiciously. After Linguini ruins a pot of soup, Remy can't resist sneaking up to the pot and creating a masterpiece. But Linguini is given credit for the soup and the garbage boy soon realizes the rat made the soup and they work out a deal. But Skinner becomes suspicious and is convinced there is a rat. Linguini meets the one female chef in the kitchen, Collette (Janeane Garofolo) and she resents that she has to teach the new boy about the kitchen. When word of the new soup meets Ego's ears, he decides to review the restaurant again, causing everyone to panic. Incredibly, there is a lot more to the story that I haven't even touched. I wouldn't recognize Patton Oswalt if he was standing directly in front of me, but he does a great job providing the voice for Remy. He has a lot of television work to his credit and has been around a while. Oswalt brings a quiet angst to the role; Remy wants to be so much more than he is and all of the people around him aren't willing to support this, so he becomes frustrated. He knows there is more to the world and it is inconceivable that his family isn't interested in finding out more. It won't fit. Please read the full review at thornhillatthemovies.com email this review to a friend
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