Ice Age: The Meltdown (2006) December 3, 2006
Posted by gproject in : Recently Viewed , trackbackDirected by: Carlos Saldanha
The whole gang is back for a sequel to the 2002 CG animated hit Ice Age, which was the surprisingly warm (considering the title) story of animals trying to escape the cold by travelling to more temperate climates. Apparently they’re still not happy though since they’re on the move again, this time to escape a flood.
Central characters Manny the mammoth, Sid the sloth and Diego the sabre-tooth tiger, are threatened by the end of the Ice Age, with snow melting into water all around them. They and their tribe of fellow creatures leave home in search of a boat that can save them from the inevitable flood. Along the way they meet a gang of possums, one of whom is actually a deluded Mammoth (Ellie, voiced by Queen Latifah), who Manny must convince of her true identity. Meanwhile, some dangerous and recently unthawed amphibians stalk the gang through the water – eyeing them up for lunch.
Right off the bat it’s worth mentioning that this is not a patch on the first movie, the plot feeling a lot thinner, especially the awkward first ten minutes. And along with the retread in storyline (another ‘journey’ adventure), there’s not a lot new added into the mix. Each of the main characters has their own little subplot – Manny is lonely as the only mammoth, Sid isn’t getting any respect, and Diego is frightened of water. Of course, all these troubles are nicely solved or overcome during the 91-minute running time.
On the good side, the film features fantastic scoring just like the original. And the animation work is excellent, so while Blue Sky studios might not match up to Pixar in terms of creativity, they’ve certainly produced some strong visuals. Plus the voice acting from Ray Romano, Denis Leary and John Leguizamo is spot on. There’s also more Scrat (that squirrel creature who’s always after the acorn) this time, but whether that’s a good or bad thing is up for debate. I think his little acorn skits break up the flow sometimes, and while everyone seems to love him, I find it interesting that the production team didn’t choose to use his character more effectively in the main plot. Clearly, they didn’t want to take any chances.
At the end of it all this is a non-too subtle attempt at redoing the much better original movie. When I first saw the subtitle ‘The Meltdown’ on the posters, I actually thought Fox were going to do a brave thing and attempt to discuss how the changing world affects these characters as they face extinction. Unfortunately, although they start to, once everyone has learnt their life-lesson or conquered their fears, the impending ‘meltdown’ is conveniently forgotten. Kids may love it now, but I doubt it’ll still be a favourite in years to come.
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