Rat in the Hat (Errr...chef's hat, that is)

Movie Review
Ratatouille
Directed by Brad Bird

Pixar has quite did it again this time. Let me get some things out of the way first: since it is made by Pixar, comparison with Pixar's previous masterpieces is inevitable. I still think that Finding Nemo is their best one so far, with The Incredibles coming in a close second. With that said, Ratatouille is still an excellent movie, an animated one of course. A worthy and excellent addition to Pixar's growing library of computer graphic animated movies.

First, let us begin with what Ratatouille is all about. Remy is a common rat, but he has one thing unique that differentiate him from other rats: he has good taste in food, and a highly sensitive nose to complement that taste. At first, his talent go to waste at the hand of his father, who uses his sensitive nose to detect whether or not a food is laced with rat poison. One day, however, due to an event (spurred on by none other than himself) that separates him and his family, he ends up in Paris and his only chance in proving that he's a great chef (next to his idol, the dearly departed Chef Gusteau, who's also the image of Remy's conscience) lies in a seemingly helpless cleaning boy named Linguini who doesn't know a thing about cooking.

When I see this movie, I thought to myself that computer graphic animation has really gone a long way. From the technical stand point, the movie really shines. Everything looks close to the real thing (they must have invest a lot of time and technical prowess in making the food looks real...and delicious, they make my stomach growl a bit during some of the cooking scenes), however Pixar still put in some touches that reminds the audience that after all, this is a computer graphic animated movie. They opt to portray the rats as close to the real thing as possible. There's almost nothing cute about them, but the saving grace of this decision is the facial animation. The facial animation is top-notch, something that is to be expected out of Pixar but still worth mentioning nonetheless. You should see the interaction between Linguini and Remy. The nods, head shakes, and shrugs that Remy does, they're just short of amazing.

The story concept itself is every bit imaginative and vintage Pixar all the way through. There's struggle, there's intrigue, there's romance (the backdrop of the movie is, after all, Paris, and what's Paris without a little romance? The end of the world, surely...), there's comedy (oh, how can we live without it!), there are revelations and realizations, and there's a story about accepting who one really is and what's he/she destined to do/become. In other words, this is one rat that's out to prove to the whole world (well, at least, Paris) that he's a great chef. And then there's always the truth. In whole, while it doesn't push Finding Nemo out of the throne of Pixar's best animated movie in terms of storyline, the story in Ratatouille still a delight to watch and follow.

The voice acting is top notch as well, with Patton Oswalt voicing Remy and Peter O'Toole giving an excellent performance as the voice of Anton Ego, the famous food critique. I must say that the chemistry between Remy and Linguini isn't as strong as what you witness between Marlin and Dory in Finding Nemo, but it is still endearing to see. Once again, this is Pixar, and you can leave it to them to create wonderfully animated characters. Remy, of course, is the star of the show, with Anton Ego coming in second in my opinion.

Ah...Paris...je t'aime...(No, not the movie), and the food is excellent as well. To close this review, I would like to say that like a great chef, Pixar has once again prepared for us another great meal to enjoy, a worthy addition to the other items already in the menu.

Oh yeah, fun fact I would like to add: Ratatouille is a name of a dish from France. For real. Nice, eh?