Movie Reviews

ICE AGE: DAWN OF THE DINOSAURS – REVIEW

7.5 out of 10

Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, the third entry in the popular animated series, is an endearingly sweet family film that will thrill the tykes and keep parents engaged as well. The entire gang from Ice Age: The Meltdown is back and just as fun in this 3-D installment. This time around Manny the wooly mammoth and friends share an adventure that takes them underground to where dinosaurs are still living and where they must rescue their friend Sid the sloth and ultimately learn what it means to be a family. There are plenty of laughs and some heart stirring moments along the way that make Dinosaurs an enjoyable ride.

Manny (Ray Romano) and his wife Ellie (Queen Latifah) are an anxiously awaiting the birth of their baby. With the impending birth, sabre-tooth tiger Diego (Denis Leary) begins to experience wander lust and decides to leave the herd in search of adventure. Sid the sloth (a silly John Leguizamo) feeling unwanted decides to leave also, but shortly after, he discovers three huge eggs, brings them back to the herd and waits for them to hatch. The eggs hatch and it is revealed that the babies are little T-Rex’s. The mother dino eventually catches up with her babies and takes them back to their underground world, inadvertently bringing Sid along for the ride. Diego returns to help Manny and the others rescue Sid and this is where the adventure begins and Ice Age 3 truly springs to life.

Just like in the other Ice Age films, there are scenes featuring the adventures of Scrat, the prehistoric squirrel who will do anything for an acorn. This time around his attempt is thwarted when he falls in love with a female squirrel who shares his affection for acorns. During the course of the movie they have their very own romantic comedy going on; boy meets girl, they fall in love, boy loses girl, etc. and each scene is delirious fun.

All the characters are back and this time we are introduced to a one eyed weasel named Buck (Simon Pegg), a swash buckling, Indiana Jones type of hero who helps them navigate the underground world. Pegg is terrific in the role and the character brings much to the proceedings. The two possums introduced in the second film, Crash (Seann William Scott) and Eddie (Josh Peck) are back as well and are as funny as ever. In The Meltdown, the pair stole every scene they were in and this time around the results are the same.

The lead actors again do a fine job. Ray Romano as always has the perfect nasally, slow line delivery suitable for a wooly mammoth. I just wish the character displayed a little more of Romano’s comic sensibilities. John Leguizamo is perfectly silly and sweet as Sid the Sloth and provides the film with heart and warmth. Denis Leary also does a fine job as Diego the tiger, but much like Romano, I wish the character had a little more of Leary’s personality. Just a tiny touch of the fire he brings to his role as firefighter, Tommy Gavin on Rescue Me would do wonders here.

With the exception of Buck the weasel, there isn’t much that is new here, but as the old adage goes…. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. The Ice Age movies are meant to provide innocent fun for family audiences and they achieve this in droves. Everything about the movie is fun from Scrat’s love story to the zany, enthusiasm of Pegg’s Buck.

To sum it up, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs is a worthy entry in the popular series that will delight the whole family. I’m sure that these lovable characters will be back for a fourth adventure and will not become extinct any time soon.

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Bill Bonfanti is FilmGo.net’s movie critic and Box office analyst. Every week you will find new reviews and box office predictions for the current crop of films in the theater.

This entry was posted on Sunday, May 31st, 2009 at 7:34 pm and is filed under Movie Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.