Movie: Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs

It’s always great to see a movie in a theater full of giggling kids. Their delighted laughter cannot help but make you chuckle, too; and at “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs,” you may even find that you are often the one starting the hilarity. For with this third installment of the successful animated franchise, the folks at Blue Sky Studios/20th Century Fox have done it again, peppering their 3-D comedy with plenty of jokes that adults can love.

The whole “Ice Age” clan is back as the new movie begins. Nowadays, those loveable wooly mammoths Manny (Ray Romano) and Ellie (Queen Latifah) are expecting the birth of their first baby, while Diego the Saber Tooth tiger (Denis Leary) and Sid the sloth (John Leguizamo) are feeling a bit left out. Sid inadvertently finds three very large (and unattended) eggs, decides he wants to be a parent, too, and the “Dawn of the Dinosaurs” adventure begins.

Sid and his new family of eggs in "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs."

Like “UP” earlier this summer, the 3-D element of this beautifully animated film simply enhances everything you see. There’s none of the gimmicks from the old days of 3-D, like paddleballs sailing out into the audience; instead, there’s simply a depth and realism that truly make you believe you are watching real characters wander across a real landscape. Of course, that landscape is the snow-covered expanse of the world during the Ice Age.

Buck, the newest "Ice Age" animated character, leads the hunt for Sid.

Even that changes as Sid’s new babies hatch. The three cuties look like nothing our mammals have ever encountered, because, of course, they are baby dinosaurs! And when the dino’s mother grabs Sid up along with her babies, the rest of his “Ice Age” family have to follow to try to rescue him, into a deep cave where another wild world is waiting.

Scrat gets distracted in the new "Ice Age" comedy.

Following the themes of the previous movies – that “family” is what you make it, not necessarily what blood creates, and that once you are part of a family, that never changes – “Ice Age: The Dawn of the Dinosaurs” throws out life lessons along with the laughs. With a fast pace, just enough scary and exciting adventure sequences to keep the kids on the edge of their seats but not crying, and a hilarious new plotline featuring Scrat, the squirrel with a one-track nut mind, this is a comedy that the whole family will love.

Rated: PG
Stars: Voices of Ray Romano, Queen Latifah, Denis Leary, John Leguizamo, Simon Pegg
Directors: Carlos Saldana and Mike Thurmeier

Studio/Official Site: http://www.iceagemovie.com/