Funny but brutally straightforward

Rating: 6/10 (26 March 2002)

Much like Monsters, Inc., I had a really good time watching this movie but felt that something had gone wrong somewhere.
First let's start with the good. The jokes are funny and clever and never let up. They're a good combination of the typical verbal humor and the not so typical sight gags. This movie also has one of the longest running gags I've ever seen in an animated movie. The characters are colorful and really know how to tickle your funny bone.
Now the bad. The characters fall prey to unconvincing conventions later on in the movie. The story doesn't have the minor plot nitpicks that Monsters, Inc. had, but it's also much more brutally straightforward. Unlike Monsters, Inc., there's really not much point to Ice Age's story. It's there and back again, and you're left wondering "Um. Yeah."
Even still, Ice Age is a fun knee-slapper that has enough charm and humor to elevate it above Dinosaur. But it lacks the gentle charm combined with zaniness found in The Emperor's New Groove or the craftiness of Chicken Run or Shrek. Even The Land Before Time was a better "buddies on a journey" movie than this one. But at any rate, I give this a 7.