One of the Summer's Best

Rating: 10/10 (7 July 2007)

When I first heard about Pixar's Ratatouille, I thought it sounded incredibly lame, and that it would signal the beginning of Pixar's demise. Not only was I wrong, but in a big way. Ratatouille was not only one of the most entertaining movies I have seen this year, but it might possibly be the best film Pixar has ever made, and that is saying quite a lot given their previous offerings.
For those of you who haven't heard of it, Ratatouille is the story of a rat named Remy who has a penchant for cooking. This poses a problem for Remy because if a rat is seen anywhere near a kitchen it is attacked and killed. However, through a chance encounter, Remy teams up with an incompetent human chef to become the greatest chef in Paris.
While the story might seem juvenile, director Brad Bird (The Incredibles) exceptionally creates a story which all audiences can enjoy. On one hand it is the tale of an outcast, who despite tremendous adversity is able to achieve great success. At the same time, it is a coming of age story; where the son must leave his family behind to do something truly great.
This story never fails to entertain the audience, not only with its laughs, but also with its characters. These characters are voiced superbly by performers which were perfectly for their roles. Bird didn't pick his actors to have names to put on a poster (as Pixar has done before with Tim Allen, Tom Hanks, John Goodman, and Billy Crystal) but the actors were specifically selected for the characters they played.
Standing out amongst these actors was Peter O'Toole who played the evil food critic Anton Ego. O'Toole delivers the finest lines of the film, as well as the climactic monologue in which his character critiques the food of Remy. This monologue may stand as one of the best ever, and it was spoken to perfection by Mr. O'Toole.
Not only does the film have a wonderful story, but its animation is as delectable as the food that Remy creates. The world which Remy lives in was complete to the slightest detail, making earlier Pixar films such as Toy Story and Monsters, Inc. look amateur. Every scene in the film was visually stunning, a fact which made the film considerably more entertaining.
Overall, I give Ratatouille 10/10 salty stix. In a summer that has been oversaturated with disappointing sequels to some of my favorite movies, Pixar has again created one of the most original, enjoyable films of the year, and I recommend it to everybody.
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