"Ice Age" melts fans

By Valerie Westen
The Collegian

Manny the mammoth, Sid the sloth and Diego the saber-toothed tiger return in another incredible adventure. The Ice Age is coming to an end, and they discover that the miles of melted ice will soon flood their valley.

In this sequel of the 2002 animated movie, “Ice Age,” Manny, (Ray Romano) and his friends Sid and Diego decide to warn everyone about the meltdown that will destroy their valley and try to escape the coming deluge by going to the end of the valley where a giant tree trunk could save the prehistoric animal kingdom from the flood.

This story, obviously inspired by the biblical tale of Noah’s Ark, make us follow the group’s adventure throughout the valley.

The star-studded cast includes Academy Award nominee Queen Latifah as Ellie, talk show host Jay Leno, and Sean William Scott of the “American Pie” trilogy.

Throughout the hour and a half long comedy, Sid the soth (John Leguizamo) will help his friend Diego the tiger (Denis Leary) fight his fear of water, while Sid himself finally acquires the respect he wanted from a tribe of “mini-sloths.”

The 10,000-pound furry elephant, Manny, desperatly thinks he’s the last of his kind until they run into Ellie, a female mammoth who thinks she is a possum and her two possum brothers Crash (Sean William Scott) and Eddie (Josh Peck), a couple of daredevils and loud-mouthed troublemakers.

Director Carlos Saldanha is no stranger to animated films as he co-directed the first “Ice Age” and 2005’s “Robots.” Although this PG-rated cartoon written by Jon Vitti, who has also written for “The Simpsons” and “King of the Hill,” targets a young audience, adults should find it enjoyable as well. The funny prehistoric characters of this movie are a delight, especially Scrat, the cute saber-toothed squirrel who is still chasing his ever-elusive nut, despite the impending flood. He is the one who will inadvertently save the day.

“Ice Age 2: The Meltdown” is funny and entertaining, but parents will want to take in consideration the PG rating. It could be quite scary at times, for example when a couple of aquatic dinosaurs start terrorizing our heroes. Also for some language and jokes that only adults should understand.

This cartoon is about love, friendship and survival. It promotes diversity, respect and heroism. It has everything you liked about the first movie with even more comedy, action and visuals.

“Ice Age 2: The Meltdown” open this Friday.

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