There are already plenty of movies that showcase Paris. Part of the fun of Pixar's movies lies in their unconventional settings. The Toy Story films may have normal, human environments, but everything is seen from the perspective of the toys. Finding Nemo shows us the ocean, and, later, a dentist's office, from the limited perspective of a bunch of fish. WALL-E has a story that is enormous in scale, but almost everything is from the perspective of a small, rather outmoded robot. And so forth. The story in Ratatouille needed to be confined to a kitchen because the main character is a rat who desperately wants to cook. Brad Bird even addresses the issue of viewpoint in the extra features on the DVD, when he explains why an alternate introductory shot of Gusteau's, in which we get a grand, sweeping look at the bustling restaurant, was ultimately cut from the film. The problem was that this scene simply wasn’t involving enough for the audience; no matter how “pretty” such a shot might have been, it is better that we see everything through Remy’s eyes, as this is his journey. In other words, I have to disagree that there is anything wrong with the film revolving around what happens in the restaurant. That's the whole point.
Story issues are another matter. While I love this film to pieces, I will readily admit that it isn’t perfect, and could have used some tightening up and polishing here and there. A major issue is that the plot, while compelling, is a bit unwieldy. Here is an interesting article that discusses the story structure of this film in great detail: http://storyfanatic.com/articles/story-analysis/ratatouille-why-the-fi lm-seems-too-long. The author points out that there are two main stories going on -- one about the struggles of Gusteau's restaurant, and the other about pleasing Anton Ego. The problem, according to the author of the piece, is that the story revolving around Ego doesn't really begin until after the restaurant's major struggles are over; Linguini is the new owner, Remy is still in hiding but very successful, customers are happy, and only then does Ego become a threat. True, we saw him in the old TV footage at the beginning, and once again about halfway through the first act, but he only becomes an obstacle much later. The author points out that the first story ends well before the second one finds its footing, and this causes problems with the film’s structure. The author’s proposed solution? End the second story before ending the first one, like Finding Nemo did.
To be honest, even though it sounds to me like this idea might have worked, I’m afraid that it would have diluted the impact of Ego’s epiphany, which is one of my favorite parts of the film. Pixar really outdid themselves with that powerful scene. In a way, it's funny that I ended up liking that scene so much, since I didn't think too highly of Ego as a character when I first saw the film. He struck me as too stereotypical.
"Courage is found in unlikely places." ~ The Fellowship of the Ring, J.R.R. Tolkien
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jajceboy
12 years ago
"Unfunny" Why would you assume it would be funny? Because it's animated?
Since when must animated films be funny?
Animation isn't one genre, it's just a way to film. Animation have several different genres. I don't think Rattatouille was ever meant to be funny. It contains funny moments but it but it's more of a drama-comedy really.
I like it. Absolutely amazing film.
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