Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (20th Century Fox)
Love Those Possums
The entire gang from Ice Age 2 is back and in great form in the third installment Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs. The animals share an adventure that takes them underground to where the dinosaurs roam, and where they also find what it is about each other that makes them a herd. There is humor, heart and a hefty chunk of adventure in this latest episode of a series that shows no signs of letting down.
Manny the mammoth (Ray Romano) and his wife Ellie (Queen Latifah) are excitedly awaiting the birth of their offspring. This puts Sid the sloth (John Leguizamo) in the family mood too. So when he discovers three huge eggs he adopts them and waits for them to hatch. When they do they are baby dinosaurs.
When the momma dinosaur eventually catches up with Sid and her babies she takes them home to an underground valley. Manny, Ellie, Diego the saber tooth tiger (Denis Leary), and the two possums Crash (Seann William Scott) and Eddie (Josh Peck) go in search of Sid.
In the underground valley they meet up with Buck the weasel (Simon Pegg) who knows his way around the valley. He helps them in their adventure and everything turns out right.
Interspersed in the story is another adventure and this concerns Scrat (Chris Wedge), the acorn lover. When he lays eyes on Scratte (Karen Disher) it is love of another type. Their story progresses at various times during the movie.
Everything about the movie is fun from Romanos slow talking Manny to the zest of Peggs Buck. And then there are the possums who literally steal the show every time they open their mouths. They were the stars of the second adventure and they come back and steal this one too.
The film is rated PG for mild violence and some mild tasteless humor but it should go over the little kids heads.
There isnt much new about this movie but since the characters are so much fun it doesnt matter. It is a movie where you can take the kids, relax and let them have a ball with it, and find some laughs in it yourself. Make sure you perk up every time the possums are on screen.
I scored Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs a thawed 7 out of 10.
