Review of Ice Age 3 – Dawn of the Dinosaurs

With a release timed to coincide with the start of the school holidays, the third film in the Ice Age franchise is definitely written with the need to keep the kids entertained in mind.  Manny the mammoth, his friends Diego and Sid find themselves in a lost world with dinosaurs to contend with as well as the imminent arrival of Manny’s first child, with his heavily pregnant partner Ellie (voiced by Queen Latifah).

Dawn of the Dinosaurs

The animation is up to the high standards of the previous two movies, but this time the movie is shot in 3-D, whether this gimmick adds anything to the enjoyment of the film is debatable, perhaps the film makers thought it best to add a novel twist to freshen up the franchise.

There are some particularly funny moments and some subtle jibes at parent hood, epitomised by the increasingly anxious Manny as he tries to “baby proof” nature prior to the arrival of his baby.  New characters are introduced, a romantic love interest for Scratt, the acorn chasing prehistoric squirrel and a strange, swashbuckling weasel character called Buck voiced by the English actor Simon Pegg.  Buck reminded us of Ben Gunn, the character in Treasure Island (the novel by Robert Louis Stevenson), that was left on the island and craved toasted cheese whilst awaiting rescue.

An enjoyable and light hearted film, that kept the children entertained.

Visit Everything Dinosaur’s website: Everything Dinosaur.