Ratatouille - A

This is the best movie I've seen in a good while. Pixar has really outdone themselves with a unique story that has everything you'd want in a good animation. It's amazing how much fun is neatly packed into this beautiful piece of computer animation. The film is funny, cultured and even touching thanks to Brad Bird and his brilliant team of animators and writers. This film truly deserves a full breakdown:

First: the story - The slapstick humor, unlikely hero, hilarious villain, and love story are classic Disney elements, but I haven't seen them so well executed in quite a long time (maybe because Disney minus Pixar has put out a decent kids' movie in a long time). Nothing feels contrived, the characters (even those with fake French accents) are totally genuine. Linguini the teenage wannabe chef voiced by Pixar regular Lou Romano is perfectly klutzy and pitiable. Remy the rat chef voiced by veteran comic Patton Oswalt is such perfect blend of animation and voice acting that he deserves to be in the pantheon of classic Disney characters.

Next: the writing: I don't remember the last time I heard such well-written dialogue. Watching talking animals is one thing, but having them resemble and talk like actual people is something else. No line is over-the-top there is no bathroom humor, it's remarkable how perfect every line is. There were a couple of lines that had me in stitches I was laughing so hard. Pixar's uncanny comic awareness has by no means decreased. The article the food critic writes at the end is also an extremely well-written piece of dialogue that sums up the themes in the film nicely

Finally: the animation - Pixar's resolve never to use motion capture (check the certificate at the end of the credits) does them credit as the animation in this movie is particularly convincing. Each gesticulation and expression is finely tuned perfectly conveying the characters' emotions. Not a small feat for a computer animation team. While Zemeckis's studios are focusing on realism in motion capture, Pixar is all about the heart of animation.