Ratatouille

*** - I like Patton Oswalt. His stand-up routine has some really good material, and he is kind of a nerd and likes science fiction, and I read somewhere that he collects action figures. So I think it’s fantastic that, for once, someone at least semi-deserving was able to land a lead role in a massive Pixar film, which probably resulted in a fat payday and a life on easy street. Leaving that positive aside for the moment, though, “Ratatouille” is still just a film about a rat whose conscience takes the form of a morbidly obese French chef, and who also controls some weird kid like a puppet by sitting on his head and pulling his hair. And it is as weird and somewhat creepy as it sounds. I have to give Pixar credit, though, that they were able to put a disgusting rat in a lead role and make him not only likeable and sympathetic, but not aesthetically terrifying as well. What this movie lacked – and most other Pixar movies have – was a great deal of humor. Yeah, there were a few jokes sprinkled in here and there, but for the most part “Ratatouille” relied on long stretches of rats scampering around and people cooking. If you are a food snob and are not horrified by rats, though, you might get a kick out of this one.