“The third time is the charm” has worn just a tad, but it is still not a chilly adventure for our prehistoric pals.
The major laughs still come from the silent Scrat as he finds a love interest and competition for that elusive acorn.
Mammoths Manny (Ray Romano) and Ellie (Queen Latifah) are expecting a little mammoth any day now. The neurotic Manny is busy baby-proofing the wild and Ellie can only roll her eyes at his neurosis.
Sid the Sloth (John Leguizamo) is hoping to babysit the new addition, but Manny immediately tells him that’s out of the question. Sid decides to get a family of his own when he finds a trio of eggs in an underground cave.
Saber-toothed tiger Diego (Denis Leary) is starting to feel a bit old and considers leaving all his friends behind. When the eggs hatch they contain baby Tyrannosaurus Rex(es?). The arctic animals are a bit confused because they thought the dinosaurs were extinct. The baby Rexes don’t play well with others as they want to eat all their playmates against Sid’s motherly protests.
However, Mama Rex shows up and takes her babies and Sid away. Diego, Manny, Ellie, Crash (Sean William Scott), and Eddie (Josh Peck) give pursuit and discover that the dinosaurs are living in an underground world heated by volcanoes. They continue to look for Sid, who is not willing to part with his kids, but discover the one-eyed weasel called Buck (Simon Pegg).
Buck lost his eye to an albino dinosaur called Rudy (hints of Moby Dick), but offers to lead his new friends on the hunt for Sid. Meanwhile, Scrat finds that his acorn has been taken by a female of his species, called Scratte, and hilarity ensues.
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs is the third sequel in the Ice Age franchise. In some ways the series jumps the Megalodon, but in other character creations it gets it just right. Giving Manny and Ellie a cute pup seems like a sitcom trick, even if the cutie pie doesn’t appear till towards the end of the picture.
The problem arises that the new character have most of the laughs and fun and it makes our established characters seem somewhat boring. I wanted to get back to Scrat and Scratte (her addition I guess could be said a shark jump too) or to the mad antics of Buck, delightfully voiced by Simon Pegg.
These additions breathe a bit of life into the film. Not that the other bits flatline, but they seem a bit too familiar. I also wonder if the missing 3D version might’ve been more exciting. There is enough to recommend the film that it wasn’t a complete wash out, however it wasn’t as fun as the first or second film.
I would also add that I preferred it to Shrek the Third in comparison to three part CGI animated films.
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs is presented in anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1) and is enhanced for 16x9 televisions. Disc one contains a commentary by director Carlos Saldanha and crew and some trailers for other Fox products. Disc two starts off with two shorts starring Scrat, Gone Nutty (5 minutes) and No Time for Nuts (7 minutes). Next is the 2 minute “The Saber-Toothed Squirrel: Nature’s Nutty Buddy” faux documentary. The 8 minute “Scrat from head to toe” shows you how to draw the little devil.
“Breaking Story” (2 minutes) and “News Report” (2 minutes) are faux news stories about Scrat. The 9 minute “Fox Movie Channel presents Making a Scene” is about crafting a scene from the movie. The 8 minute “Falling for Scratte” is about creating Scrat’s female foil. The 7 minute “From Easel to Weasel” is about the creation of Buck. Finally the 1 minute “Walk the Dinosaur” is a clip music video and some DVD-ROM games.
Dawn of the Dinosaurs is a fun film, but it feels lighter than the other two. The big laughs still come from Scrat, but the addition of Buck also adds some as well. For a two disc set the special features feel a bit light too.
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs + The Scrat Pack is now available at Amazon . As of yet, there is not a release date for this version of the DVD in the UK. Visit the DVD database for more information.
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