Ratatouille, The Movie

After Pixar is done with Cars, it seems they're taking on epicures (in rodent form) in the new animated feature Ratatouille.

Watch the trailer here. It made me smile.

Best,
Michael

I hear a Chicago alderman wants to ban it already.

And the swine didn't hire me as a consultant...



Antonius

I saw Ratatouille tonight with friends--CHARMANT! Everyone here will get the jokes. The little insights are delightful, as is the whole picture. I found it visually and comedically quite well-done and the whole (Evanston) audience applauded both during the show and at the end. Now I want to see the French language version, which they have surely done. Go see it.

Antonius wrote:And the swine didn't hire me as a consultant...

Ummm, wrong family, no? Wouldn't that be the "rodentine"?

I caught this yesterday and thought it was absolutely wonderful, with a level of food detail that frankly, I found surprising. Foodies and fans of professional kitchens will love the detailed touches. In spite of the involvement of big-time industry consultants like Thomas Keller, I was expecting the food side of this film to be pandering and seriously dumbed down but it wasn't. It really delivered, especially with an important moment near the end of the film which accurately conveyed one important reason why it is that we love the foods we love. But beyond that moment of significance, many other elements of this film ring true.

The story is charming without being overly smarmy (or too predictable) and the artwork and animation are stellar. I think Peter O'Toole steals the show but the voice performances are excellent across the board. I think I'll probably go see it again because I'm sure I missed some of the little moments while focusing on the narrative, the first time through.

Given what I expected going in, I'm surprised to say that I recommend seeing this film. It definitely succeeds.

=R=

For a short time, I'm sure, you can watch the movie here, though I'm sure its much more enjoyable at the theater.

-ramon

Ronnie,

I'll take your word for it but the premise of the movie, a rat in the kitchen, seems like something I'd rather not see (or at least know about). Couldn't they have chosen a different species (or at least a less repulsive rodent) to be the hero?

stevez wrote:Ronnie,

I'll take your word for it but the premise of the movie, a rat in the kitchen, seems like something I'd rather not see (or at least know about). Couldn't they have chosen a different species (or at least a less repulsive rodent) to be the hero?

LOL! I guess they'd gone to the mouse one too many times

=R=

just saw it in high def w/some current and ex staff members of mine. we all agreed that it was truly excellent in all details. highly suggested.

The theatre was full for the sneak preview and though the kids laughed, the adults laughed harder. I thought the Pixar animation was exceptional. The movie makes Paris much more inviting than "Paris, Je T'Aime.

I won't give anything away, but Remy the rat finds his surroundings change from sewer to elegant restaurant. Many of the characters have a strong connection between food, emotions and memories. My favorite character was the restaurant critic, I loved his reviews, especially the last one.

http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.ph ... 3&start=60

y'all MUST see this movie.

i read lth every day - usually three or four times a day - and feel as though i have a relationship with all of you here, though distant and unrequited. i'm a bit shy about sharing my thoughts on things (obviously), but "ratatouille" has made me come out of hiding.

the people who made this movie did their homework. it's spot-on, not only about restaurants and critics ( god bless peter o'toole and the aforementioned review near the end of the picture), but also about how food affects our lives and relationships. it's about cheering for the underdog (or rat). but, most basically, it's about food. loving food. needing to be near it, think about it, talk about it. sound familiar?

please don't let the thought of "it's a disney cartoon about a rat (!) in a kitchen" deter you from seeing it. it's so much more than that. truly.

I've read some stuff with Brad Bird (the director of this, Incredibles and Iron Giant), and un-cute-ing the rats was intentional. They weren't meant to be especially anthropomorphic, they wanted the dichotomy of them being disgusting, and yet doing beautiful things.

I thought that it was a very well done movie. It pretty much documented life in a competitive working commercial kitchen. There is a lot of culinary information passed along within an interesting picture.

Yup. Wonderful, highly enjoyable movie. I was absolutely dumbfounded and astonished at the number of children in the theater under the age of 5 (we're talking some two or three dozen kids that small!), but except for the one right behind us they were all either well-behaved or so bored they fell asleep. Pity. What could easily have been cloying, silly, or just downright foolish was a truly enjoyable, fun, and even instructive movie. The voices were terrific and the animation nothing short of extraordinary. The script, too, was quite intelligent. This is not a movie for 5-year-olds, or even 10-year-olds (or at least for most that age).

The Lovely Dining Companion is a children's book editor who read the script in connection with her work many months ago and had absolutely no interest in the movie. She conceded yesterday that the script hadn't changed; she had simply been unable to envision such an enormously successful presentation of it. Bravo!

PS I agree with those who pointed out Peter O'Toole's last review....

Check out this clip on some behind-the-scenes glimpses of how they made the fod come to life in the movie. I haven't seen the film yet but I sure am going to see it soon!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eu-7olnY6Xs

We had planned to see it at the first show of the day yesterday, but my son tested the almost infinite limits of his parents' patience and so the offer of a movie had to be withdrawn to make the point that rudeness and smart-assedness have consequences.
Reading the reviews, I'm now angrier than ever and feel that I must punish him again for making me punish him in the first place, thereby depriving me of seeing the film with him, whose company I prefer to most others. I fear this cycle of blame and reprisal may never end and I may never see the film.

I so, so feel your pain. We may never again see the Incredibles due to a similar decision. Ratatoullie will mark our hopeful return to the cinema...maybe this weekend...

Stand your ground! Remember - they're smaller than you and they eat less!

This is not a movie for 5-year-olds, or even 10-year-olds (or at least for most that age).

I think that this is very true for the majority of kids. In fact, we saw a family with kids around Thor's age (3.5) walk out 3/4 of the way through. Thor, on the other hand, really did enjoy it even with the many parts of the plot that went over his head. Though, of course, cooking is a greater part of his life as it would be for many other LTH kids. In fact, he was walking around the Green City Market just that morning in his very own chef jacket asking kids to make homemade raspberry soda at our (Purple Asparagus) tent.

RE: kids in the theater. I believe most theaters (at least those in the Cinemark family) are showing a Pixar short before the main feature; the short deals with a flying saucer, and when it appeared, a tiny kid (2-3 years) burst into tears. She quieted down until The Critic appeared, at which point the kid freaked out again. It was not disturbing, but interesting to see how quickly the kid responded to sinister elements on screen.

I found Ratatouille quite enjoyable (even got a little misty when The Critic had his pivotal taste memory experience), though there were a few plot elements I found hard to digest (how'd that rat learn how to read?) -- still, a worthwhile movie to see.

I see Thomas Keller provided one of the secondary voices. The brother rat?

Hammond

The short is very cute, is at all theaters, and is a signature pixar touch. I think every movie going back to Toy Story has started with one.

I believe that Keller was a restaurant patron. I definitely agree about the short pix before the film. Several kids in the audience, including mine, thought it was Monsters Inc., which he has only just gotten over the scariness of it. Small note: I'm very glad he did as I fully believe that Monsters Inc. was the most likeable, creative and original of Pixar's creations.

By the way I find it hysterical that they cast Patton Oswalt in the lead- now he did an AMAZING job, but if you hear his stand up comedy sometime- it's totally disgustingly funny yet very very vile at points in time. Let's just say the f' bomb comes out a LOT. He's also like 5'0"- he's about the size of Remy

keller was the restaurant patron who asks for something new from the kitchen.