Ratatouille

I checked out a sneak preview of Ratatouille last night, and I must say I truly loved this movie. Everything from the animation to the score to the voice acting to the story (and especially the story) was EXCELLENT.

I don't know if it appeals to kids as much as other Pixar offerings, but this one upholds their legacy of excellence.

Casting Patton Oswalt as Remy was PERFECT. The rest of the voice cast was outstanding as well...including Pixar "house voice" John Ratzenberger. See if you can tell which guy he is without foreknowledge (as in, don't read the cast list).

Michael Giacchino's score was as perfect for this story as the award-winning one he created for "The Incredibles" and the incredible music he has created for most of J.J. Abrams' recent projects, including "Alias" and "Lost".

Even with my 3-year-old son making it really hard to concentrate, and our "we got to the theater late and had to sit up front" seats, this movie was fantastic. Everyone should go see it, even if they don't have kids.

Brad Bird - you done right by us movie fans again...Ratatouille is great!

Taking great ingredients including but not limited to, an endearing story with meaning and a message, superb and breathtaking animation, brilliantly voiced narration and as cute a rattus rattus you're ever likely to encounter. Combined, refined, formed and baked to perfection, the result, a jaw dropping piece of film that you can perpetually admire, enjoy and savour.

I just saw "Ratatouille" tonight.

It's a first class movie. Several thoughts come to mind...

-The character performances are so good, I think there's no sort of movie they couldn't make. I've heard Pixar's John Carter of Mars is going to be live action? No! I want them to do it all animated.

-"Cars" definitely _was_ a lower-value softball they threw to finish out that original Disney-gets-half-of-everything-plus-sequel-rights contract they were in at the time. I remember all the clucking last summer about how Pixar had lost its way.

-There were a few moments when they seemed to lose that stylized reality they had established and things looked merely "real".

-There was one scene in the latter part of the film where I thought "I can't believe they are doing this tired movie cliché" but they pulled out of it at the last second and made it something new.

-The 2D-ish end credits were great. Stick it out to the very end to see the mo-cap disclaimer!

-With this, Brad Bird is certainly one of the animation gods now.

Tonight I went to see Ratatouille during a preview offered to Myspace users in Boston. Overall the movie was GREAT! It was really funny, often in unexpected places, the storyline kept you engaged the entire time and the overall mood was lighthearted and inspiring. A real "feel-good" movie. I admit I was a bit skeptical going in, I mean the idea of a rat in a kitchen kind of left me queasy, but I left the theater excited to see it again when it is released. The voice actors are excellent and the animation is amazing. I've been to Paris before and the overall views were very accurate. At times I could tell exactly where in the city the events were taking place. Overall a fabulous movie, I highly recommend it!

Remember how everyone was talking about Toy Story when it first came out? The incredible visuals, unique style, vividly imagined world? The next time people were talking that way with such enthusiasm about a computer animated movie was Finding Nemo. I'm excited to say that Ratatouille will be the next one to redefine the visual creativity and technical detail of computer animated movies. Honest to goodness, I was awestruck by the animation, and that never happens to me. It is a visual masterpiece of a movie if ever the term applies.

The next thing to talk about is the "genre" of the movie. As Pixar enthusiasts will tell you, Brad Bird, the director of Ratatouille, also directed The Incredibles, which has the most inspired and creative action sequences from any of the Pixar movies. Ratatouille, while not so straightforward with its action, has almost as much as The Incredibles did, in unique ways. Most memorable is the shotgun scene near the beginning. (You'll know what I'm talking about when you see it). Other than that, this is the expected comedy-with-heart movie from Pixar that so many have grown to love.

The voice acting? Spot on. Every voice is distinctive, and it never feels like a celebrity's voice tacked on to a character (Shrek, I'm looking at you), it feels like the characters themselves speaking. You can't ask for more from voice acting.

And finally, the script and the story. The entire irony of the story -- a street rat with a passion for fine food -- is beautiful, and a tight, smart, wonderful script flows from this. The pacing of the story is odd and choppy at places, but this is a very forgivable grievance. The only other minor fault is that a few of the dramatic one-liners feel a bit forced. Other than that, this is the most layered, complex, and satisfying script from Pixar since The Incredibles.

Overall, I recommend that everyone see this movie when it hits theaters (I was lucky enough to see a pre-release screening). Though not perfect, it is an animated masterpiece in true Pixar form with breathtaking animation and visual design.

10/10