Ratatouille

Year: 2007
Director: Brad Bird & Jan Pinkava
Voice cast: Patton Oswalt, Lou Romano, Ian Holm, Janeane Garofalo, Brian Dennehy, Peter Sohn, Brad Garrett, Peter O'Toole, John Ratzenberger

Pixar somehow has a way of coming up with a winner every time. From toys to bugs to fish to superheroes and cars, they never fail to produce a winner of a movie. This time they take its viewers to the kitchen, and the sewers too.

Ratatouille has two protagonists in its story, the first one being a rat called Remy. Unlike most rats, who couldn't care less about what they eat, Remy prefers food of a better quality i.e. not from garbage. His dad and brother do not understand his motivation, other than noticing Remy's keener sense of smell. Anyway, Remy is inspired by his hero, the legendary chef Auguste Gusteau, who not only owns a restaurant in Paris, but also wrote the book Anyone Can Cook. It is that very phrase that drives Remy to seek the better and more creative way to enjoy culinary delights.

Unfortunately, that desire also proves to be disastrous. Remy, in his attempt to cook in an old lady's kitchen, winds up getting separated from his family during their escape. Through the sewers, he lands himself....in Paris! And right beneath Gusteau's restaurant no less. It is at this restaurant that Remy meets the second protagonist, Linguini, a kitchen boy who has absolutely no cooking skills whatsoever. Linguini struggles to keep up in Gusteau's kitchen, and when he is just about to potentially destroy a pot of soup, Remy sneaks in and uses his culinary genius to save the day. But his presence is discovered by the head chef Skinner, who orders Linguini to dispose of the rodent, since rats are an absolute no-no in a kitchen.

Just as Linguini is about to toss Remy in the river, he realises that the rat not only understands him, it also cooks splendidly. Thus begins, believe it or not, the most unique friendship on screen (if you don't count Stuart Little). The duo work out a system on how Remy should direct Linguini around the kitchen, while trying to avoid Skinner's constant watching and being noticed by Linguini's appointed mentor, Colette. The longer Linguini stays around the kitchen, the more uneasy Skinner feels. When he learns of a connection between Linguini and the late Gusteau that may jeopardise his plan to turn Gusteau's legacy into an instant fast food franchise, Skinner sets out to uncover the boy's culinary secrets, which he already suspects, involves a rat. Remy on the other hand, is reunited with his family, but his father's constant disapproval of his relationship with a human makes it hard for Remy to pursue his dream. The duo's relationship is put to the test when well-known food critic Anton Ego challenges the restaurant to astound him.....

As far as cartoons go, this is pretty damn good. You have two main characters, who are different in every respect, yet share a common trait of being an outcast among their own kind. This relationship, added to the many delightful factors in this film, from the culinary elements to hilarious situations and excellent animation, make Ratatouille a truly entertaining film. Kudos to Brad Bird for coming up with another winner yet again. I for one enjoyed the animation in this film. You'll be impressed watching Remy run from place to place, from counter to window to the floor to the road to the sewer to everywhere you'd imagine a rat go, and it's amazing how it all unfolds. The characters are also well written. Remy and Linguini are easy to root for, but I really liked Remy's brother Emile, who is well-meaning but quite ignorant when it comes to food, which makes him totally fun to watch.

My only gripe for this movie is a tad too many subplots. The parts on Linguini's connection to Gusteau and his budding romance with Colette could have been left out to make a tighter story. But hey, make no mistake about it. This movie is fun all the way, and it also spares some room for drama and action. Action, you ask? Check out the old lady who goes to extreme measures to exterminate rodents. Gives a whole new meaning to overkill. Hilarious.

Go watch this movie and have fun, you may even want to learn how to cook when you're done. (4.5/5)