Ice Age 2-The meltdown English Movie
This is a sequel to 'Ice Age' and coming during the summer break is a real cooler. With its blue environment and towering mountains, pre-historic animals inhabit the land of ice. The opening scene with the squirrel Scrat chasing an acorn down the valleys of ice prepares you for a good one hour plus of laughter and fun.
It is the time of global warming; the ice is melting, breaking here and there slowly as fear envelopes the animals about the impending flood. They have to escape and save their lives in a boat placed far away.
In twos and fours the animal families start their march. The three friends, Manny the wooly mammoth, Diego the saber toothed tiger and Sid the sloth also is part of this animal brigade. The story revolves around them and their journey to the 'boat.' Manny is sad over the extinction of his species and desperate to survive, while Diego lives with a phobia of water. Sid the sloth seems to be the casual one with his tongue in cheek comments.
As the trio moves onward they meet Nanny another mammoth, much to the surprise and delight of Manny. Nanny however believes that she is a possum as a family of possums brought her up. And the twin possums by her side always are her brothers whom she loves like a mother. Her mannerisms are so possum like that she even sleeps upside down from a branch like the two possums.
Manny seriously hopes to start a family with Nanny but that seem to be in vain. The two possums look really cute and their antics give you a hearty laugh. As the journey progresses, with an ice chunk breaking here and a sea monster attacking the trio, it is Scrat's antics with his acorn that provides the lighter moments. A pack of vultures follow the animals in anticipation of their death. They burst into a song, 'Food glorious food.'
And on the way Sid keeps counseling Diego to overcome his fear of water, which he recalls at the end of the journey when Sid's life is in peril. Just when the boat is in view and the animals think that they have made it, the way to it is marked with sudden outburst of hot springs. Sea monsters emerging from the melting waters hinder further movement.
Nanny is caught in a cave and Manny jumps into the water to rescue her out. And the surprise is when Diego takes a plunge to rescue Sid. The animals are together in a safe environment once again. But when a family of mammoths arrives Nanny decides to join her flock. Manny is in two minds, whether to follow his ladylove or remain with his friends Diego and Sid. Of course his friends take the decision for him as he follows Nanny.
Ice Age is a real change from the Donald and Mickey films of Walt Disney House that we have been laughing at for quite a long time. Produced by Blue Sky and distributed by 20th Century Fox, the graphics of this computer animated cartoon are excellent and the story though childish will keep an adult chuckling too. Ray Romano, John Leguizamo and Denis Leary have lent their voices to Manny, Diego and Sid. While picture of Scrat the squirrel lingers in the mind, other scenes like family of dung beetles rolling the 'ball of crap' with them on their onward journey deserves mention. There are several others like the time when Ellie and the two possums lie dead seeing the vultures hovering overhead. Not just for children but adults could take a good and cool break with Ice Age 2- The Meltdown.
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