Lacks the usual quick-fire one-liners of other Pixar films but is up to the usual quality in every other regard

Rating: Null/10 (5 May 2008)

Evicted from his home and separated from his family, rat Remy is living the dream as an unwelcome guest in the kitchen of the famous Gusteau Restaurant in Paris. His passion and gift is cookery and a series of events sees him with soup that had been messed by garbage boy Linguini. Chef Skinner is ready to fire Linguini for his meddling until the customers love "his" improvised soup. Skinner keeps him on but Linguini knows the truth, striking a deal with Remy where the latter provides the cookery and the former provides the "looking like a human" bit.
Although it won the Oscar for best film, Ratatouille got mixed reviews from critics on release. Watching it for myself I must admit that it exposes the long-term value of the "best animated feature" aware because it is not a film that should show up as "best" unless it is in a very short list (which of course it was). This is not to say that the film is no good though and indeed it is a perfectly good story told in a very slick, amusing and engaging way with all the usual quality one would expect from Pixar in regards animation. The story has the usual moral about the importance of the heart over appearance and in this regard it works really well, with a touching character at the core. I refer of course to Remy, because Linguini is all a bit wet as a character.
This doesn't matter too much because Linguini is rarely the sole focus in the way that Remy is. The story develops well across the running time and I was never bored once but, and here's the thing, I didn't laugh that often. For me the story was strong enough so that the lack of really good consistent laughs didn't bother me but I can understand why it is an issue for others. In many ways it is because Pixar are victims of their own success and we now expect the strong heartfelt story to be underlain by constant quick fire gags and one-liners. The lack of the latter is not a weakness in the film but it does slightly disappoint until you get into the story.
It is not without laughs though but they are more general and less smart than you might expect. The big colourful action is amusing and entertaining and it all drives the good story forward effectively. The voice cast for once is not filled with famous A-list names but you don't feel their absence. Oswalt is the best main character and is better served than Romano with material. Holm is nearly unrecognisable but good, although I'm not so sure about Garofalo's mixed attempt at accent. Dennehy and Sohn are fun in support while O'Toole is a real good piece of casting.
Overall this is a really good film that delivers a consistently engaging story with heart and humour. It is not the usual quick-fire one-liner stuff one might expect but it is still an very enjoyable film that both parents and children will enjoy.