Pixar's best, most subtle and most beautifully animated yet

Rating: 9/10 (21 July 2007)

Firstly, in almost all of the Pixar films before it, the creators had to create and establish a very specific world: in A Bug's Life it is the world of the anthill, in Monsters Inc it is the alternate monster universe, in The Incredibles it is the sort of retro 1950's-throwback-style world populated by superheroes, and the same can be applied to their other works as well. Ratatouille, on the other hand, takes place within the real-life, contemporary "human" world, and thus does not need to establish the physics and dynamics of its own alternate universe  much humour is usually derived from the parallels between it and our real world and from the absurdity of the mechanics of these universes.
Another major difference is how Bird treats his themes. Major, educational themes have been the center of most animated movies since the oldest days of Disney and right up through the contemporary Pixar age. But what can more than certainly be said about pretty much all the rest of the Pixar movies is that they never try to hide their messages  in fact, I thought that the over-obviousness and simplicity of the message that appeared in Cars was what made it slightly less-appreciated among other Pixar projects. In Ratatouille, not only is the film absolutely brimming with overlaying themes and messages, but Bird at the same time never lets them take the wheel, and always keeps them looming overhead the actual plot and storyline. Themes such as friendship, loyalty, teamwork, and accepting the different and the unexpected can all be found in the film, but never once does Bird force-feed us his message, and for that I appreciate him all the more.
The story itself is of course fantastically executed and an absolute wonder to behold. It's touching, original, extremely clever and just plain fun. It's crazy but never enters the territory of absurd, and we always believe in it. The dynamics between Remy and Linguini are also brilliantly carried out, and they work together so incredibly well. But ultimately, the key to the film's success is the utter believability and realism of its characters. We totally believe in the dynamics between the two and in their own particular character traits and quirks. It's just so well done; and I must also mention that the character of Remy was designed in the most absolutely and utterly adorable, eat-you-up way possible! He just puts a smile on your face every time he wiggles his little nose.
The animation in the film is nothing short of revolutionary. It is easily the most incredibly well done and the best looking computer animated film made yet, in every aspect. Images that were once flat back in Toy Story become so realistically alive, it's quite mind-boggling to tell you the truth. The use of focus in the animation is so incredibly spot-on perfect and works so realistically in comparison to how it would actually work in real life, its almost hard to believe that this isn't done in real cameras. Add to that absolutely stunning lighting, colouration and textures, and you get some elements of the film that almost seem completely real  just look for example at the piece of bread near the beginning of the film, or the water in the river or the texture of the cobblestones on the street. It's unbelievable! I usually don't refer to the voice acting in a movie because I feel its redundant, and I'm also not a fan of using big celebrity voices just for the sake of having them, unless they are actually used dynamically in the animated character itself or if they are seamlessly integrated, as they are in Ratatouille. But I must bring up one particular vocal performance in this film that just had me grinning every time his character came on screen and his voice started booming: Casting Peter O'Toole as the voice of food critic Anton Ego was a stroke of genius quite unlike any other voice casting decision in ANY other animated film ever  or at least since the casting of Robin Williams as the voice of the Genie in Aladdin. His voice, instantly recognizable, fits the character of Ego so incredibly well, it's almost eerie. And he of course gives a brilliant performance, creating one of the most humorous characters in the entire film.
Ratatouille is another five-star success added to Pixar's already high-standard repertoire. It is just as touching, human, real, convincing and emotional as any other Pixar film, although to its credit Bird makes sure that its major themes and messages aren't too obviously or prominently featured, keeping everything subtle and putting the plot and characters first  which are all equally brilliantly done. The animation is the most vivid, perfect and absolutely beautiful in any animated movie yet, and it all fits in together perfectly with the very sly and unique Pixar sense of humour. I of course expected nothing less from the studio, and am now even more brimming with confidence about their next project, Wall-E, after the slight stumble that was last year's Cars. Easily the best movie yet this summer.