Ratatouille (2007)

Back when the movie Cars was coming out, I thought I finally lost interest in Pixar movies - the previews were just so dumb. Thankfully someone sat me down to watch it and my faith was restored. The fact is - Pixar never misses a beat, and I should have known that by now. Every single one of their movies has been a home run as far as I am concerned.

So it was with great anticipation that my wife and I went and saw Ratatouille, in the theater no less (yes we do get out sometimes). The movie is about a rat who loves to cook. He is ostracized from his clan of rats that eat garbage, and moves to Paris to follow his destiny. He soon meets up with an aspiring chef, and almost by accident the young man realizes that this rat can cook. Comedy ensues as the rat learns to control the actions of this young chef by sitting on his head and pulling his hair. Hiding under the chef's hat, the rats culinary creations are the talk of Paris, and soon the pair is squaring off against the premier food critic (voiced by Peter O'Toole).

Smaller children will have trouble keeping their attention - I think this is more for an older audience. However, I loved it. The story was fun, the comedy was fresh, and in general, just another great Pixar movie. As I think back to all the movies I have seen this year, this movie sticks out more and more and is climbing on my list of favorites for 2007.