Colombo Critic.com

Ratatouille is a triumph of the American perception of the rest of the world. First there’s the obvious and embaressingly mistaken assumption that just ‘cos it’s got “rat” in the name then making a film about a rat that can cook would be “A-OK”. And as Ratatouille is a French dish the film is quite predictably set in Cana France.

“Hm… don’t you think the French might be offended that you made a film whose central theme is “Anyone can cook” (and rat’s can cook better than everyone)?”

“Well, duh… they’re French. It’s not like they have feelings or anything.”

And there you have it. French people in an American movie have big noses, no chins, random personality disorders and can be beaten hands down on any day of the week by a rodent. Oh, and the two lead characters sound American. Bravo.

Other than that this film has the usual Pixar perfection. Perfect lighting, perfect sound and perfect animation. Everything looks and feels just right, so much so that “Pixar Perfect” should be the catchphrase of the new century.

However, superficialities aside, this movie isn’t exactly the smartest rat on the block. There’s always a feeling that everything is being laid out for you all neat and tidy so that you don’t have to waste time actually thinking about things.

Rat has a nose for fine food + Rat idolizes fat French chef who claims that “Anyone can cook” = Rat ends up in charge of a successful French restaurant.

Mean looking, sepulchral art critic + Psychopathic, Nazi-midget French Head Chef = Audience in no doubt as to who the real villains are.

It’s all so obvious and American friendly. Even the promotional material feels the need to explicitly demonstrate the prononciation of the title. That’s like, so radical… Dude!

So, around 100 minutes of being led by the hand through this pretty, but clichéd landscape watching everything unfold as you expected it to, you come to the final showdown between Rat and Critic. In a matchup as bizarre as that there can be only one outcome: the Rat wins…

But it’s how the Rat wins that ultimately makes this movie work. Critic receives food. Critic eats food. And then follows fifteen (15!) seconds of the most sublime and immersive storytelling I have ever witnessed. In that quarter-minute the viewer is presented with a true work of art, one that is much more than the sum of its parts. Everything that came before leads to this one point and achieves true perspective. It was a truly grand and humbling experience.

If you want a truly mindless and superficial experience then watch the first 100 minutes and walk away. If you want to see a masterpiece then stay till the end. And yes, they all do live happily ever after.