Maintains standard of previous two

Rating: 7/10 (6 December 2009)

I have to say, straight out, that I enjoyed the third installment in this prehistoric animated series. I can’t get enough of the adventures of Manny and Sid and Diego, even as their “herd” continues to grow. Each of the movies is a lot of fun to watch, with just enough sweet scenes to balance things out.
This time around, Manny and Ellie (Ray Romano and Queen Latifah) are expecting, and of course Manny’s a nervous father to be. But that’s not all – the group dynamic is starting to shift in other ways as well. First, Diego (Denis Leary) is starting to feel old and in the way; second, Sid (John Leguizamo) is actually getting in the way of Manny’s well-laid plans. But like with the first couple of movies, what brings everyone together is a journey. This time around, Sid is accidentally snatched by a giant T-rex, whose eggs he had been, er, watching. And the race is on to find and rescue Sid in what’s apparently a dinocentric world right under our friends’ icy land.
The visuals are stunning. Sweeping vistas of whites and blues when the gang is at home, and vibrant hues of browns, greens, and darker blues in the land of the dinosaurs. Computer animation has gotten to the point where the movies have the same level of quality as the early Disney cel animation films. The Ice Age films are wonderfully rendered, from those stunning backgrounds to the detailed expressions of the characters.
I do hope, though, that the Ice Age films (if more are made) don’t fall into the same rut that befell the Land before Time series. There have now been thirteen LBT movies! Of course, only the first one was in theaters, but you get my drift. Let’s not see Ice Age XX: The Search for the Great Wisdom Tree or some such fluff. Now, each of the Ice Age films has been in theaters, and although none of them has been an instant classic, each has been charming fun, and the quality has not deteriorated over the films.
So in essence, the latest Ice Age film maintains the high fun quotient of its predecessors without lapsing into schmaltz or too-broad physical humor. I mean, it IS a kids’ film, after all, so there’s plenty of physical humor to be found, but the comedy isn’t based solely on pain and suffering.