Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (July 1, 2009)

This is the third film in the Ice Age franchise from Blue Sky Studios. It follows Sid the Sloth who is taken by a female Tyrannosaurus after stealing her eggs, which leads to his friends, Manny, Diego, and Ellie embark on a rescue mission, traveling to a tropical lost world inhabited by dinosaurs beneath the ice. The setting is fantastic, breathing new life into this, already stale after two entries, franchise. Dinosaurs are a great choice as animals that dwarf even the mammoths, who currently rule the surfaces world. The subterranean realm is a lush jungle with Dinosaurs of various shapes and sizes inhabiting its splendor in a delicate, harmonious balance. Sid actually manages to be tolerable with the mother dinosaur and her kids balancing out his strange tendencies and providing much needed heart for this clown. They really steal the show for the majority of the film, along with a new member of the band of misfits, Buck, a one-eyed weasel. He is just the right among of wild, wacky, intelligence and fearlessness and is a great addition to the cast. The rest of the series mainstays, Ellie, Manny, and Diego hold their own, with the looming threat of Ellie about to have a baby hovering over them the entire journey, raising the stakes a bit. It all comes together in an entertainable romp; I can gladly recommend Ice age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, as the second-best movie in a franchise that is all downhill from here.

Final Rating: 7/10