Children are so easily amused

Rating: 5/10 (7 April 2006)

In this unnecessary sequel, Manny the Mammoth, Sid the Sloth and Diego the Sabre-toothed Tiger must go on another journey to avoid becoming fish food when the world starts to melt. Along the way, Manny stumbles across another of his species (which he had previously thought were extinct) called Ellie. However, being raised in a possum family, she thinks she is one of those creatures and so is in the habit of sleeping upside down on trees hanging by her tail and playing dead at a moment's notice. Can she be convinced of her own heritage and her responsibility in continuing the mammoth line? Meanwhile, Scrat continues his never ending quest for that elusive nut, Sid gets kidnapped by some fire-worshipping beasties who think he is their god and Diego.. well, doesn't really do a whole lot of anything. Oh, wait he learns to swim. Yay!
There was a lot of laughter echoing around the cinema during Ice Age 2. Shame hardly any of it was coming from the over 10 crowd. If you took Scrat's scenes out, you'd be left with a whole lot of nothing. A few passable action sequences, a lot of groan-worthy jokes and some failed attempts at pathos take up the bulk of the film, and it's only when the crazy squirrel comes on that the movie really comes to life. Sadly, his time on screen is strictly limited, so for the most part you'll be rolling your eyes at yet another fart gag or wee-wee joke.
This film did not need to be made, and only exists because the (superior) original took in so much at the box office and on DVD. It's difficult to imagine a company like Pixar releasing a follow-up to one of their animated hits just to make money and if they do, they actually put some effort into it. Look no further than the critical success of Toy Story 2 for an example. Blue Sky Studios on the other hand has no such scruples, and so Ice Age 2 is a rush job from start to finish.. and it shows. I say: Wait for video, then stick it on for the kids while you get on with the chores. There you go, the perfect babysitter! 5/10