Very funny but poorly animated

Rating: 7/10 (10 July 2013)

Ice Age
*** (out of 4)
81 mins/ U
Cast: (voice) Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Goran Visnjic, Jack Black, Cedric the Entertainer, Stephen Root, Diedrich Bader, Alan Tudyk, Chris Wedge
Directors: Carlos Saldanha, Chris Wedge
Plot: A sabre-tooth tiger, a sloth and a mammoth come together to return a human child to its tribe in the Ice Age.
JJ's Verdict: Ice Age is a talky, fun but poor looking animation set in the times of the deep freeze. Although it includes many other animals, the film centres mainly on a charming but vicious sabre-tooth tiger, a lively but irritating sloth and a miserable and cynical mammoth who are forced to join each other in a quest to return a lost human infant back to its tribe.
Ice Age is full of brilliant voice work from Ray Romano, John Leguizamo and Denis Leary who all clearly define their animal's characteristics and have excellent chemistry with one and other. This was a must in a film with poor and unrealistic CGI animation that not only gives little effect to the backdrops and landscapes but also gives the characters few facial expressions and emotions.
Apart from the main trio, there is also an excellent independent character in Scrat, an acorn- chasing squirrel. Scrat is entirely there to be laughed at and as lightning, an avalanche, and glacier and ice cracking prevent Scrat from his acorns, you can only sit there in hysterics. Although the verbal humour is funny, the physical, slapstick humour can get tiring to watch and most of the 'action' sequences turn out to be somewhat anti-climaxes.
Ice Age is an emotionally advanced kids film with very strong themes of friendship and divided loyalty but it's just a shame that it has to come through the voice-actors – not the animation.