My Review of Ice Age 2: The Meltdown · 7:48pm Nov 15th, 2021
Rating Scale:
12/10—a complete masterpiece; flawless and outstanding
11/10—Excellent, near-perfect film
10/10—the standard rating; awesome film with a couple of flaws
9/10—a wonderful film with several flaws
8/10–a great film with numerous flaws but not enough to ruin it
7/10—a fun and entertaining movie; not great but still enjoyable
6/10—a slightly above average film; it is something I might watch again
5/10—mediocre movie; not awful but not great either
4/10—a below average film; it could have been much better
3/10—a bad film; poorly written and poorly executed
2/10—a very bad movie; the few good things in the movie overshadowed by the bad things
1/10—a terrible movie; a total waste of time
0/10—a worthless piece of abomination; should have never been made
Greetings, everyone! This is yours truly back with another movie review for today! This afternoon, I will be reviewing the second installment of the Ice Age franchise called Ice Age 2: The Meltdown. This was yet another one of those movies I watched during childhood times as well as one of the few sequels in general that I personally found to be pretty much decent. In fact, this movie was...overall above-average although nowhere as great as the predecessor. If I remember correctly, there was a time when I used to love this movie just as much as I loved the first movie and would watch it several times. But as I got older over the years, I soon started to lose admiration for it because it soon started to get a little boring for my taste. However, there are still some elements therein that I really admire.
This movie is about an impeding glacial meltdown that threatens the entire herd. Wherefore, they are forced to vacate their home and prepare themselves for departure before it is too late to save themselves from upcoming danger. Meanwhile, Manny is depressed over the fearful thought that he is the last mammoth on earth and wonders if there were more of his kind out there. Fortunately, he meets a female mammoth who behaves like a possum. From that point onward, Manny and his friends head on a wild ride.
Honestly, I am very happy that he was able to find someone whom he eventually had a romantic interest in where he would start over and start a new family. Considering the way he lost his first family, that mammoth deserved happiness.
Additionally, the animation and voice acting were great as always. The character development was well-written, and the new characters were somewhat intriguing. Crash and Eddie were both comedic yet irritating. Props to both Josh Peck and Seann William Scott for their well-done voice roles for their respective characters. The same goes to Queen Latifah for her well-done voice performance as Ellie.
Despite the positives I have mentioned for this film's credit, the plot felt very weak in terms of the pacing and the flow. I especially didn't like the main antagonists for this film. Cretaceous and Maelstrom weren't really that interesting because of their lack of screen time and they never spoke. I like vocal villains a lot more than silent villains. Now, silent antagonists can be both impressive and intriguing; it's just a matter of execution and style that can make a difference. Just my opinion.
Also, while the new characters I mentioned were pretty much likable, Crash and Eddie would utter some lines or jokes that didn't deliver well enough or would fall flat on the ground. I just wish they would have been better written. Not even the music, provided by John Powell, was that memorable or amazing.
Overall, Ice Age 2: The Meltdown is slightly above-average but it is not that great of a movie as some folks would claim it to be. If you love this film more than I do, that is perfectly alright. It is definitely not a guilty pleasure for me, that's for sure. Therefore, I will rate this second film of the series a solid 6/10.
Peace!
On a subject completely different from the first comment...I do remember seeing this movie a lot in my younger years, as well as often scene selecting to watch the parts with Cretaceous and Maelstrom over and over again. I don’t remember the exact reasons for why, but I believe it was because their species were ones that I hardly recalled seeing or hearing about in any other form of media.
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Despite being identified as a pliosaur and an ichthyosaur, respectfully, by the director and producers of Ice Age 2, Maelstrom and Cretaceous resemble more like a Globidens and a Metriorhynchus.