Cast: Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Simon Pegg, Sean William Scott, Josh Peck, Queen Latifah; Director: Carlos Saldhana; Producer: Lori Forte John Donkin; Screenwriters: Michael Berg Peter Ackerman, Yoni Brenner; Music: John Powell; Genre: Animation/ Sci-Fi Adventure; Distributor: 20th Century Fox; Location: Pre-Historic Times; Running Time: 87 min.;Technical Assessment: 3.5
Moral Assessment: 3
CINEMA Rating: For viewers of all ages
Ice Age 3 opens with the usually gentle-mannered Manny (Ray Romano) now a nervous wreck because Ellie (Queen Latifah) is due to give birth anytime. Eventually, Sid (John Leguizamo) turns from delighted to devastate as he realizes he will soon become an outcast to the mammoth family. Meanwhile Diego (Dennis Leary) thinks he has lost his prowess as a hunter when he fails to capture a gazelle he has been stalking and decides to leave his herd. But before he is able to do so, Sid falls into an ice crack and discovers three eggs he believes were abandoned. Despite warning from Manny, Sid decides to adopt the eggs and soon they hatch with 3 baby T-Rexes. Oblivious to what they are, Sid happily ignores his friends warnings and raises his 3 new babies until the angry mommy T-Rex shows up and takes her 3 missing infants and Sin into a hole in the ice. Now Manny and Diego, with a very pregnant Ellie and the usually mischievous possum brothers and the help of their new friend Buck, a one eyed underground living weasel, must rescue Sid in a land beneath the ice where an entire world of dinosaurs have survived.
This 3rd installment of the sub-zero animation comes with a strong storyline and clever script. The CGIs are amazing as audience is treated to a majestic visual depth of 3D animation. The action sequences are exciting both for the intended viewers and their adult companions. The cast obviously has already found their comfort zones and interacts with each other well. And as always, the quirky saber-toothed squirrel Scrat steals the scenes whenever he appears. The movie is well-paced and enjoyable.
In between Sid’s mushiness, Manny’s one-note laggardness are wholesome life-lessons about family and friendship being more important above all. Just like the first 2 films, Ice Age 3 emphasizes the importance of learning to go past ones differences and get along to live in harmony. Being one family and community necessitates going past our personal agendas and individual desires. Instead it calls for us to focus on protecting the interest of each other at all costs.
The plot is straightforward and simple enough for the children to follow although some jokes are better suited to an older audience, the film still delivers a lovely entertaining 97 minutes for the entire family.
