Blu-ray Review HTF BLU-RAY REVIEW: Ratatouille (1 Viewer)

[Mike Frezon]

Wellllll...I kinda agree with Ron...but, then, I'm pretty partial to both Toy Story movies (and very excited about the prospect of TS 3). I agree Ratatouille surpasses many of the subsequent Pixar flicks. But, I definitely feel it deserves additional viewings.

But it's tough when your initial effort is a film as good as Toy Story...and then it's sequel (which I've always heard was meant to be a Direct-to-video effort) turns out to be arguably as good. It's hard to keep going up.

But the Pixar folks always do quality work and I find that by revisiting some of the stories I am drawn into them more. Maybe I'm blown away by the animation at first, I don't know.

EDIT** Ron: My thought was that Brett was disagreeing with Ron's opinion of the Pixar canon.

 

[BrettB]

Sorry Ron, I may have created some confusion. I was referring to Ron-P's comments.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Too many Rons here. I gotta fix that somehow.

 

[Stephen_J_H]

Ratatouille and Toy Story? Apples and oranges. Ratatouille is all about subtlety, whereas Toy Story is an action/buddy movie, as is Toy Story 2. I like them both, but give the edge to Ratatouille because Brad Bird is a superior storyteller and ultimately, whether or not animation succeeds depends on the ability to tell a story. This is where Pixar largely excels and the other studios are struggling to keep up The Iron Giant, The Incredibles and Ratatouille combined make an amazing hat trick for the last 10 years, and I can't wait to see what Bird does next.

FWIW, my kids loved this movie and will be rewatching several times.

 

[Lyle_JP]

For me, they only kept getting better after Toy Story. Each film was a leap over the last. At least until they peaked with The Incredibles, which might not just be my favorite Pixar film, but my favorite animated film, and in my top ten of best films period. After the Incredibles, I've seen a decline. Cars and Ratatouille are good films, but they're not The Incredibles (or Nemo, or Monsters).

 

[Stephen_J_H]

Keep in mind that Bird "inherited" Ratatouille after Jan Pinkava left the project over creative differences. The fact that Bird was able to form a film as incredible (pun intended) as Ratatouille after coming onto the project midstream is a testament to his storytelling skills, which means we may not have seen Bird's peak yet.

 

[TravisR]

Comparing Pixar movies is sorta useless- their worst movie is better than almost every other animated movie in the last four decades.

 

[Mike Frezon]

I shan't take this off-topic any longer...but while TS & TS2 are, indeed, buddie movies...they are extremely full of subleties...which, for me, is the biggest part of their charm.

Stephen, I agree 100% that animation only succeeds with a well-told tale (Mr. Disney agreed with us, too!). And, I agree with Travis that their worst movie is, indeed better than most recent animated film. I cannot go back four decades, though...because I've also got a soft spot for Disney's Little Mermaid, Beauty & the Beast (well-deserving best picture nominee!) & Hunchback of Notre Dame.

 

[TravisR]

Yup and those movies are the exact reason why I said 'almost every other animated movie' instead of 'all animated movies'.

 

[ppltd]

This is one of those films I passed on in the theaters. The previews did nothing for me. But you guys are beginning to peak my interest. I am looking forward to getting home this weekend and viewing it.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

The difference between Ratatouille and past Pixar films
is that you can see that, on an artistic level, this was something
a little more refined.

This film will not appeal to kids, and that's the very reason why
I enjoyed it so much. It spoke to me on an adult level. For once,
it wasn't the story that really grabbed me, but the artistic level of
the animation itself.

 

[Stephen_J_H]

Ron, I beg to differ about the film mot appealing to kids. All 3 of my kids liked it, but since I have such eclectic taste in movies, that might explain something. I think "not for toddlers" or the standard Disney set would be a more appropriate assessment.

 

[London Lawson]

I watched it and didn't see what all the fuss was about. I am getting sick of all these animal animations already.

 

[Mike Frezon]

Boy, I can't wait to see those titles (especially B&TB) on blu-ray!. I always think of B&TB as the worst-looking title in my collection. And I'm not usually that discriminating.

 

[Kenneth Lee]

Hey Matt,

Great review!

Disney / Pixar's Ratatouille (Blu-Ray) is seriously the most gorgeous High-Def video I've seen. It was a blast watching this.

I hope to see more of Pixar's releases on Blu-Ray soon (so I can upgrade my whole collection).

 

[lukejosephchung]

Between Ratatouille, Cars & the Short Films Vol. 1, I'm in Pixar Heaven!!!

 

[Cees Alons]

Luke,

Welcome to the forum!

But there really is no reason at all to shout here.
Please use normal fonts and font sizes!

Thanks.


Cees

 

[FrankT]

This is a stunning looking movie. Good stuff.

 

[DaViD Boulet]

Agreed Ron.

I had the same reaction. In fact, this is the first "animated film" that, for me, starts to blur the line between animation and real cinematography. Many moments in the film were decidedly "cinematic" in a way that even that adult-oriented japanimation artform doesn't quite attain.

 

[JediFonger]

i'm glad the HTF krew picked up on brad bird as the man behind iron giant, incredibles and this rat movie.

http://imdb.com/name/nm0083348/
^he was also part of simpsons krew, believe it or not =P.

i saw this in the cinema and proclaim this the best pixar movie afterwards. it really holds up to the test of time. you get somn new everytime you watch it, signs of a classic.

on the technical side, CG movies are where i notice color banding the most. i have to mentally forget that we're still using 8-bit here. i wish both HT equipment+media as well as PC's have been transitioned to 16-bit color depths already... but alas, it remains a dream.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_depth

perhaps that is the next evolution? =P. i'm a bit of a nitpicker though. the audio is amazing. i'm totally satisified with lpcm. my ears will only get worse with time. we really don't require any better audio.