The latest Ice Age movie opens tonight. Find out what Mike thought.
The Ice Age series
is one of the most popular and prolific family franchises of the last several
years, bringing in over $700 million in the US alone. The 2002 original starred Ray Romano, Denis
Leary and John Leguizamo as prehistoric animals banding together to save a
human baby and survive the titular ice age.
As three sequels followed, their families grew, adding wives, kids, and
a menagerie of funny and adorable new characters to their adventures. This summer brings the fifth (and if the
trailers are to be believed, final) chapter of the animated saga, Ice Age: Collision Course.
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| Has anyone seen Fred Flintstone? |
Collision Course is
a movie with a lot going on. The main
plot deals with some pretty heavy apocalyptic themes as the tribe of animals must
find a way to survive the impact of a coming asteroid that would surely wipe
them out. The mortality theme never
seems to weigh too heavily though—this is a kids’ movie after all. Besides, there are plenty of other
distractions, such as a suspicious family of feathered flying dinosaurs led by
patriarch Nick Offerman (Parks &
Recreation). There’s also a pretty
basic Father of the Bride subplot as
Manny the mastodon (Romano) comes to terms with his daughter’s upcoming
wedding. And what would an Ice Age movie be without an appearance
by the acorn-chasing prehistoric squirrel Scrat? There are the usual unifying themes of family
and togetherness seen throughout the Ice
Age series, but it’s not always as simple and coherent as it should be.
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| Acorns are much healthier than crack. |
There are a few chuckles to be had here, mostly at the
expense of unlucky-in-love sloth Sid (Leguizamo), or in the form of the usual
fart jokes and things of that nature.
One of Collision Course’s
biggest drawbacks is its sprawling cast.
Earlier installments were more satisfying because they kept it
simple. Manny, Sid and Leary’s
saber-toothed tiger Diego had a fun, heartwarming adventure, and that was
enough. As the families grew, so did the
cast (notable additions include Jennifer Lopez, Queen Latifah and Simon Pegg),
shifting the focus to an ensemble that seemed to value star power over
simplicity. All of this seems like it
should be fun but gets to feeling a bit bloated by the time the fifth movie
rolls around. The resulting film is
appropriately cute and funny, but still a bit of an unsatisfying mishmash.
The Ice Age series
subscribes to a basic formula, and for the most part the formula works. But Collision
Course, like the last couple of Ice
Age movies, tries to do too much and ends up being a bit distracting and
even hollow. The film’s biggest downfall
may be opening just weeks after Finding
Dory and The Secret Life of Pets,
two superior animated choices that are still packing theaters. Even with Ice
Age’s brand recognition, being just “okay” may be enough to get Collision Course lost in the summer
shuffle. Ice Age: Collision Course is just a tad too busy to be as fun or
funny or genuine as it would like to think it is. Kids will love it, but will probably forget
about by next week, while still cuddling their stuffed Nemo.
Score
-Mike Stec