Ratatouille

There is scene in Ratatouille that is roughly ten seconds long. It is the best scene Pixar has ever created (and that’s saying something). It was instant. It brought tears to my eyes. It made me laugh so hard the volume couldn’t even come out. It was simply brilliant. And I’m not going to tell you what goes on this climactic moment of excellence, but if you have seen this film you know exactly which scene I am talking about.

Ratatouille is deserving of all its critical praise. There is little wonder how this film got 97% on Rotten Tomatoes. Brad Bird and Pixar know what they are doing. I haven’t seen Pixar screw up yet. Every film they put out is great fun for both kids and parents alike. Pixar is a five-course meal compared to the microwave burritos put out by Dreamworks Animation. Even the Pixar shorts (in this case a fun alien romp called Lifted) are better than Shrek. The animation is so crisp and the stories are so well told, you simple have to marvel at the genius of Pixar. Of course, a lot of credit should also be given to Brad Bird. This former Simpsons writer, is responsible for The Incredibles and The Iron Giant (both on my greatest animation list). Bird knows how to get you involved with the characters and tell an interesting story with powerful messages. All other animators should take a Brad Bird seminar in order to perfect their craft.

Here is a sampling, an appetizer if you will, of what I loved in Ratatouille. The character designs. The water sequence. The Paris visuals. The squeaking. The design of Ego’s study. Ego’s critic speech. The realistic reaction to rats. The quick cut of the health inspector. The thumb. The love story. The message of knowing who you are. The wet rat look. And of course, the ten second scene. I also love that this movie doesn’t rely on celebrity voices. People might remember Patton Oswald as Spence from King of Queens, but he’s hardly a household name. Granted, Peter O’Toole is recognizable as the miserly food critic, Anton Ego, but most of the actors disguise their voices in French accents. It’s hard to place Janeane Garofalo as the love interest or Pixar favourite John Ratzenberger as a waiter. Of course, now you’ll probably be listening for it.

And while I think Ratatouille is an excellent film, there are two things that bothered me. The first is the disturbing image of rats running through a building. While Remy, the main rat, is cute, the rest of the clan is a little hard to take. I kept thinking of the plague. There is scene that is reminiscent of Cinderella with all the rats working, but this version kind of creeps me out. Maybe that was intentional. I’m not quite sure. The other thing that bothered me were the supporting characters. While Finding Nemo and Cars are rich with funny and strange individuals, this film kind of backed off from them. Don’t get me wrong, the main characters and even some supporting characters are well fleshed out and interesting, but in one scene they quickly gloss over the other chefs in the kitchen. I wanted to see and hear them a bit more. Maybe they were cut for time. I also thought they could have given Remy’s brother a few more quirks. By these are minor quibbles.

Ratatouille is awesome. I think you should see it in the theatre. The fine-hair animation looks great on the big screen. But then again, if you have HD, you can probably see that at home too. Personally, I would spend ten bucks just to see that ten-second scene again. Seriously, it’s that amazing.