Ratchet and Clank (2016)

Ratchet and Clank (2016)

4/10

Starring the voice of

Paul Giamatti

John Goodman

James Arnold Taylor

Directed by Kevin Munroe

I’m not much of a gamer, and this is my first introduction to the Ratchet and Clank series.
This computer-animated movie had a bad box-office run, not even making enough to cover its $20 million production cost. Word of mouth might be the reason the movie did so poorly. You can also blame the marketing—there wasn’t enough pull to make me want to see this movie.

After watching it, I can’t see how this movie could have been a hit. The whole story was flat, and the animation wasn’t grand. For a hit game series on Sony PlayStation, the producers and writers didn’t do justice to the characters or the story. They relied on cheap comic moments and dumb, irritating characters, making you wonder why they spent so much money producing a flick that feels more like a TV movie.

Even the lead characters, Ratchet and Clank, didn’t seem to have much chemistry on screen, a weakness in the character dynamic, and relied on their supporting characters to fuse as a team. I also did not find the voice casting, particularly engaging.
Everything in this movie happened so fast—no character development, no story depth. We’re just thrown into a world of weird-looking creatures, with one trying to create his own planet (the bad guy, Chairman Drek) and the other trying to make himself matter (AKA Ratchet).

The movie kind of reminded me of Kung Fu Panda in the way Ratchet idolized the Rangers and somehow got selected to be one of them.
Clank was a defect in Chairman Drek’s production of fighter robots, and the way they glossed over his creation was... questionable. If you have half a brain, you’ll spot many issues surrounding his introduction, making you wonder why the writers couldn’t have picked a better way to bring the character into the story.

The movie’s plot starts with the introduction of Ratchet, an automobile mechanic who dreams that one day he’ll matter. Then, an opportunity comes for him to try out to be a Ranger, the galactic team that defends their planet from attacks.
A new enemy named Drek is devouring worlds, and to stop him, the Rangers are recruiting a new member. Ratchet auditions for the role but gets dropped due to his bad record.
Meanwhile, Drek creates an army of fighter robots with one goal in mind: destroying the Rangers before they can foil his plans.

During the production of his fighter robots, one turns out defective. The defective robot escapes to Ratchet’s planet to warn them and help fight against the robot attack.
His first contact is Ratchet, who lies and claims he knows the Rangers. On their way to warn the Rangers, a wave of robots attacks the Rangers at their base. The robots are close to wiping out the Rangers when Ratchet and his new robot friend, whom he calls Clank, hatch an idea and save the day—propelling Ratchet from zero to hero.

Now, engulfed by his newfound fame as the newest Ranger, he and his pompous team decide to take the fight to Drek.

Skip this movie—you don’t have to put yourself through it.

Ice Age: Collision Course (2016)

Ice Age: Collision Course (2016)

2/10

Starring the voice of

Ray Romano

John Leguizamo

Denis Leary

Directed by Mike Thurmeier

At a time when Blue Sky Studios had a computer-animated Ice Age movie coming out, it was a reason to look forward to going to the cinema. But they’ve totally milked this franchise dry. There’s practically nothing left that can be done to lift this series from the slump it’s reached.

This movie isn’t just boring—there isn’t a comedic voice for miles. Nothing in this waste of reel made any sense, and I was totally amazed by the number of sleeping adults in the theater while this movie was rolling.

If you’re like me and enjoyed the first Ice Age movie, where Manny and his newfound herd of Sid and Diego had to take a human child back to his family, you’ll be totally amazed at how far this series has fallen. The introduction of new characters and the consistency in the saber-toothed squirrel’s quest for acorns is worth applauding. That aside, another consistency is how bad the movies have gotten after the first one. Every Ice Age movie has been worse than the one before it, and this one stands as the worst of them all.

I’ve come to the conclusion that the only Ice Age movie anyone who hasn’t seen this franchise should watch is the first—and then stop there. In this fifth installment, Shira, who was introduced in the fourth installment (Ice Age: Continental Drift (2012)), barely has anything to say or do, unlike in the fourth.

Now, the series has a running gag involving Scrat, the saber-toothed squirrel, and the formation of the planet. In this installment, aliens are involved, and Scrat gets on board their ship, almost destroying the world—well, wiping out a civilization on Mars—all for his precious acorn.

This new installment starts with the introduction of Peaches’s fiancé, Julian. He’s annoying and plans on taking Peaches away from her family. During Manny and Ellie’s anniversary celebration, the whole crew witnesses something amazing happening in the skies. They get word from Buck that it’s an asteroid heading toward Earth to wipe it out.

Buck, who has figured out how the asteroid works, decides to find a way to divert its direction and send it away from Earth.

So, the crew journeys to the proposed site of the asteroid’s impact to stop it from being attracted to Earth.

I’m not wishing Blue Sky Studios a negative run at the box office, but I do hope the returns don’t justify a sixth Ice Age movie.

Driving Miss Daisy (1989)

Driving Miss Daisy (1989)

8/10

Starring

Morgan Freeman

Jessica Tandy

Dan Aykroyd

Directed by Bruce Beresford

Here’s a movie that’s more than just a classic—it’s a shelf keeper, one for your archive that you can watch time and time again. Driving Miss Daisy shows how diversity and differences can be overcome when two people rely on each other for support rather than viewing themselves as unequal.

Based on the 1987 Pulitzer Prize-winning drama of the same name by Alfred Uhry, which was part of his Atlanta trilogy, this film had Morgan Freeman (who received an Academy Award nomination but lost to Daniel Day-Lewis) reprise his role as Hoke Colburn from the play. When released, the movie won Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Makeup at the 62nd Academy Awards, while also landing both leads (Freeman and Jessica Tandy) Best Performance by an Actor and Actress at the 47th Golden Globe Awards.

Driving Miss Daisy is a comedy-drama about an old lady and her chauffeur—a weird mix and a totally mismatched pair of a white Jewish 65-year-old woman and a Black man in the year 1948.
While watching, you’ll never believe how they grow from being employer and employee to friends over the thirty-two-year period the movie spans.

Touching on many sensitive subjects along the way, you’ll be amazed at how one character judges, behaves, and outright tries not to like the other, while the other humbles himself and ensures he remains well-behaved and cultured.

Driving Miss Daisy starts with the introduction of Miss Daisy (Tandy) and her accident, which marks her as unfit to drive. Her son, Boolie (Dan Aykroyd, who also received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor), hires Hoke (Freeman) to be his mother’s chauffeur. Miss Daisy hates the idea of relying on someone to drive her around and does everything she can to make Hoke uncomfortable and get her son to fire him.

After the persistence of both Hoke and Boolie, Miss Daisy finally gives in and allows Hoke to drive her around. Their days together make them grow fond of each other, and Miss Daisy, a retired schoolteacher, takes an interest in Hoke’s inability to read and teaches him how to.

They live through anti-Semitism together, Dr. Martin Luther King’s movement to end racism, and Miss Daisy’s battle with dementia as she grows older.

This is one movie that will touch you and make you appreciate the stand many Black people had to take to ensure others could be free. 

But, the movie’s pacing can feel uneven, with some moments dragging more than they should. While Freeman and Tandy deliver solid performances, Miss Daisy’s transformation doesn’t get the depth it deserves, making it feel underdeveloped.

Made on a $7.5 million budget, this classic closed shop with over $145 million at the box office.