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Ratatouille
Year: 2007
Director: Brad Bird
Watching Ratatouille is for me comparable to an experience like Singin' in the Rain or Some Like it Hot. You get this incredible feeling of happiness, of fulfillment, of pure joy at living. If you want an animated movie to make you feel passion for life, there's no movie better than Ratatouille.
That is not to say that this is a "feel-good" movie, entirely. Many parts of it are. It ends "happy" (although the restaurant Remy works at closes and Anton Ego loses his job). There are many happy moments. But the struggle of Remy as an artist are real in this film. He's a rat, yes, but Pixar does a great job of making us sympathize with rats... I guess they can do anything.
There are so many great things about this movie that I don't even know where to start. I guess I'll begin with the animation. Holy Crap, this is one of the most beautiful of all Pixar's movies, and that's saying a LOT. First of all, Remy and the rest of the rats are animated in a way that makes them look adorable and friendly rather than repulsive. Hats off for that. And let's not forget those views of Paris. The camera pans and scenes in Paris are too good to be true, they absolutely make my brain melt. The cooking scenes look delicious, and every damn thing Remy makes I want to eat.
And to pair well with the animation is the music. Up and Toy Story used to be my favorite Pixar soundtracks, but recently Michael Giacchino's breathtaking score for Ratatouille has been rising in the ranks. I think it might now be my favorite. It is like hearing solid gold, we get the most beautiful orchestrations, melodies, and tonal textures. Ugh, the ending just makes me want to laugh and cry at the same time, and I think the music is a huge part of that.
And I realized that's what a lot of this movie is. It's a lot of "happy-sad." I wouldn't necessarily say bittersweet, it's not like that. It's a feeling that I can't quite put into words, but it makes me feel like I'm sinking yet floating, existing yet watching myself exist; it makes we want to go out and do stuff in the world, but it also makes me feel bad about the world. I wonder if anyone else gets this feeling from Ratatouille or I am just insane?
Anyways, we haven't got to the substance of this masterpiece yet. The characters feel so real and amazing, starting with our protagonist Remy. He feels like someone who you can totally relate to, even if he is a rat. He wants to do stuff in the world, he wants to create not take, but he feels restricted by society. Well, as he finds out, he is more than restricted. He is hated. But Remy, by the end, proves to the small circle of people that are willing to listen that anyone truly can cook. It's a much better ending than the Bee Movie (I know I'm comparing one of the best animated movies ever made to the worst), in which the bees and the humans begin co-existing. Ratatouille is a fantasy, but much of it is also grounded in reality. The movie knows no time soon will humans and rats begin to get along. That's the way things are, and Remy seeks to do little things to change it.
Linguini is hilarious and charming, and of course Colette is totally awesome. The villains of the movie usually are complex and interesting characters, such as Anton Ego, who befriends Remy by the end. Mustafa is a pretty fun villain who is probably the only real antagonist of the whole movie. He's a good one, though.
That ending scene, though. If I ever made a list of the best scenes in all of Pixar, the last 5-10 minutes of Ratatouille would be on there. It is truly beautiful. It doesn't make you cry like Up or Inside Out, but it digs deeper into your emotions in my opinion. Anton Ego's review is so incredibly written, seeming to be speaking right to your soul. The visuals of Paris and the restaurant to go along with it are un-matched. I would change very few things about Ratatouille, and it's another easy top ten animated movies of all time.
Ratatouille
Year: 2007
Director: Brad Bird
Watching Ratatouille is for me comparable to an experience like Singin' in the Rain or Some Like it Hot. You get this incredible feeling of happiness, of fulfillment, of pure joy at living. If you want an animated movie to make you feel passion for life, there's no movie better than Ratatouille.
That is not to say that this is a "feel-good" movie, entirely. Many parts of it are. It ends "happy" (although the restaurant Remy works at closes and Anton Ego loses his job). There are many happy moments. But the struggle of Remy as an artist are real in this film. He's a rat, yes, but Pixar does a great job of making us sympathize with rats... I guess they can do anything.
There are so many great things about this movie that I don't even know where to start. I guess I'll begin with the animation. Holy Crap, this is one of the most beautiful of all Pixar's movies, and that's saying a LOT. First of all, Remy and the rest of the rats are animated in a way that makes them look adorable and friendly rather than repulsive. Hats off for that. And let's not forget those views of Paris. The camera pans and scenes in Paris are too good to be true, they absolutely make my brain melt. The cooking scenes look delicious, and every damn thing Remy makes I want to eat.
And to pair well with the animation is the music. Up and Toy Story used to be my favorite Pixar soundtracks, but recently Michael Giacchino's breathtaking score for Ratatouille has been rising in the ranks. I think it might now be my favorite. It is like hearing solid gold, we get the most beautiful orchestrations, melodies, and tonal textures. Ugh, the ending just makes me want to laugh and cry at the same time, and I think the music is a huge part of that.
And I realized that's what a lot of this movie is. It's a lot of "happy-sad." I wouldn't necessarily say bittersweet, it's not like that. It's a feeling that I can't quite put into words, but it makes me feel like I'm sinking yet floating, existing yet watching myself exist; it makes we want to go out and do stuff in the world, but it also makes me feel bad about the world. I wonder if anyone else gets this feeling from Ratatouille or I am just insane?
Anyways, we haven't got to the substance of this masterpiece yet. The characters feel so real and amazing, starting with our protagonist Remy. He feels like someone who you can totally relate to, even if he is a rat. He wants to do stuff in the world, he wants to create not take, but he feels restricted by society. Well, as he finds out, he is more than restricted. He is hated. But Remy, by the end, proves to the small circle of people that are willing to listen that anyone truly can cook. It's a much better ending than the Bee Movie (I know I'm comparing one of the best animated movies ever made to the worst), in which the bees and the humans begin co-existing. Ratatouille is a fantasy, but much of it is also grounded in reality. The movie knows no time soon will humans and rats begin to get along. That's the way things are, and Remy seeks to do little things to change it.
Linguini is hilarious and charming, and of course Colette is totally awesome. The villains of the movie usually are complex and interesting characters, such as Anton Ego, who befriends Remy by the end. Mustafa is a pretty fun villain who is probably the only real antagonist of the whole movie. He's a good one, though.
That ending scene, though. If I ever made a list of the best scenes in all of Pixar, the last 5-10 minutes of Ratatouille would be on there. It is truly beautiful. It doesn't make you cry like Up or Inside Out, but it digs deeper into your emotions in my opinion. Anton Ego's review is so incredibly written, seeming to be speaking right to your soul. The visuals of Paris and the restaurant to go along with it are un-matched. I would change very few things about Ratatouille, and it's another easy top ten animated movies of all time.