We’re ranking the films of Pixar Studios, leading up to the release of Inside Out.
Ratatouille
Directed: Brad Bird, Jan Pinkava
Writers: Brad Bird
Okay. Number 8 is apparently the point when things stop being polite, and start getting real. From here on up, any move can be given a convincing case for any position. The previous Pixar pictures are average to damn fine films. But starting with Ratatouille, Pixar is operating on another level.
Which, given the premise-Remy the rat (voiced by Patton Oswalt) dreams of becoming a chef-may sound like a stretch.
Ratatouille is Brad Bird’s second film for Pixar. It is, thematically and story-wise, the most sophisticated film the studio has ever made. It is not about grief, or death, or emotional progress, or any emotional ideas that penetrate almost all of Pixar’s films. Ratatouille instead is about art, criticism, and the pursuit of perfection in the kitchen. It stars a rat, a kitchen-worker, and a restaurant critic named Anton Ego. It is set in Paris, the real Paris, and, in the grand tradition of American movies in Paris, features the city and its sights as a dramatic back-drop to the story.
All such intellectual bravura aside, Ratatouille is still a Pixar movie. It features an unlikely and slow-building friendship (a constant Pixar presence) that will in the end help one member reach their goal, and another learn to accept his or her identity. The rat and the ‘garbage boy’, as Linguini is often referred to by the head chef, fill these roles as well as Woody and Buzz or Dory and Marlin.
It even has a villain of sorts, who has a redemption moment that is so powerful and so not childish that its inclusion in the film really is remarkable. The motto of the restaurant where Linguini toils away is “anyone can cook,” and it is in that line that Ratatouille finds artistic vision.
When the hard-nose food critic Anton Ego eats the masterclass meal in the final moments of the film, he writes a piece of food-criticism that operates as his redemption as a character, the triumph of Remy and Linguini in their friendship, a treatise on art and the artist, a critique of criticism as a professional endeavor, and the value of criticism as a platform for public admission of mistakes. All of this, in a piece of food-criticism.
And the lesson, “Not everyone can become a great artist; but a great artist can come from anywhere,” really is beautiful. Artistry is rare, but that fact should not keep anyone from recognizing great art.
There is artistry aplenty in Ratatouille. In its writing, which is both low and high-brow at once. But also in its style, and joie de vivre. Just look at this chase scene, and the details of the animation-the rat, the leaves, the water as Chef Skinner falls into the river.
Ratatouille comes in at #8 because it never hits the highs of other Pixar films. There is no moment in Ratatouille that takes the breath away. But the sustained level of entertainment, wit, and intellectually stimulating rat-to-human dialog builds never lets up for an instant until it reaches it’s highly emotional art-theory lesson.
It is the least referential, most self-contained piece from Pixar Studios, one so confident in it’s story and creation that it comes as a surprise when the end arrives at all. I wonder if this even qualifies as a kid’s movie.
Best Line: “In many ways, the work of a critic is easy. We risk very little, yet enjoy a position over those who offer up their work and their selves to our judgment. We thrive on negative criticism, which is fun to write and to read. But the bitter truth we critics must face, is that in the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is probably more meaningful than our criticism designating it so. But there are times when a critic truly risks something, and that is in the discovery and defense of the *new*. The world is often unkind to new talent, new creations. The new needs friends. Last night, I experienced something new: an extraordinary meal from a singularly unexpected source. To say that both the meal and its maker have challenged my preconceptions about fine cooking is a gross understatement. They have rocked me to my core. In the past, I have made no secret of my disdain for Chef Gusteau’s famous motto, “Anyone can cook.” But I realize, only now do I truly understand what he meant. Not everyone can become a great artist; but a great artist can come from anywhere. It is difficult to imagine more humble origins than those of the genius now cooking at Gusteau’s, who is, in this critic’s opinion, nothing less than the finest chef in France. I will be returning to Gusteau’s soon, hungry for more.”
Pixar Easter Eggs: Every Pixar film references Pizza Planet, the pizza shop and delivery company from Toy Story. The truck is scene when Skinner chases Remy through the streets, above the bridge.
Best Possible Alternate Title: Portrait of the Artist as a Young Rat. A.O. Scott called the film “one of the most persuasive portraits of an artist ever committed to film.”
Notable Box Office Details: Ratatouille opened with the highest grossing weekend for an animated film in French history.
Ratzenberger:
Best Animated Feature: Winner. Also secured 4 other nominations: Original Screenplay, Original Score, Sound Editing and Sound Mixing.
Disney reportedly wanted to push the film for Best Picture, but thought that might hinder the film’s chances with Best Animated Feature.
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