Manny, Sid, Diego, and Ellie are back - ICE AGE: DAWN OF THE DINOSAURS DVD Review by Dean Winkelspecht

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—> See Link to our DVD Review (below)

When Sid's attempt to adopt three dinosaur eggs gets him abducted by their real mother to an underground lost world, his friends attempt to rescue him.

"All of our friends are back, and some new ones, including a ferocious T-Rex... ICE AGE: DAWN OF THE DINOSAURS is tirelessly inventive visually."
—Roger Ebert (Chicago Sun-Times)

"Adding tons more action and razor-sharp 3D, the ICE AGE series proves it is far from extinct as it hits its stride with an irresistible and enormously fun third entry." —Pete Hammond (Box Office)

"Simon Pegg makes a nice acerbic addition to the cast as Buck, a leathery one-eyed weasel..."
—(Washington Post)

ICE AGE: DAWN OF THE DINOSAURS
— on Blu-ray & DVD (+ bonus: The Scrat Pack)
(now available - released October 27)

Three Editions:
Widescreen DVD (see extras further below)
Widescreen DVD, + bonus disc: The Scrat Pack
Blu-ray, + Digital Copy & DVD Copy (w/extras)

Just when you thought they couldn't get any cooler... your favorite prehistoric pals from Ice Age and Ice Age 2: The Meltdown are back in an all-new, ginormous animated adventure for ALL ages.

20th Century Fox recently released the summer animated hit Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs on Blu-ray and DVD (Oct 27). The standard widescreen DVD retails for $29.98, and is also available for $34.98, packaged with a bonus disc (The Scrat Pack). The Blu-ray retails for $39.99, a 3-Disc set of the film, bonus Digital Copy, and bonus standard DVD Copy.

Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, also known as Ice Age 3, is a 2009 3-D computer animated film. It is the third and final installment of the "Ice Age" series, produced by Blue Sky Studios and distributed by 20th Century Fox. The film features the voices of Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Queen Latifah, Seann William Scott, Josh Peck, Simon Pegg, and Chris Wedge. The story has Sid being taken by a female Tyrannosaurus rex after stealing her eggs, leading the rest of the protagonists to rescue him in a tropical lost world inhabited by dinosaurs beneath the ice.

The film was presented in RealD where available. RealD uses circularly polarized light to produce stereoscopic images. Hence the performance is better than with linearly polarizing systems which suffer from visible double imaging if the head is tilted to the side.

BONUS FEATURES include:
Widescreen standard DVD
• Filmmaker Commentary
• "Marley Meets Purina Puppy Chow"
• Trailers (to other Fox & MGM titles)

(2-Pack) Widescreen DVD + The Scrat Pack
Disc One:
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
• Filmmaker Commentary
• "Marley Meets Purina Puppy Chow"
• Trailers (to other Fox & MGM titles)
Disc Two:
The Scrat Pack - plus more:
• 2 Scrat Shorts: "Gone Nutty-Scrats Missing Adventure" and "No Time for Nuts"
• The Sabre-Toothed Squirrel: Natures Nutty Buddy
• Scrat: From Head to Toe (Learn how to draw Scrat - Tutorial!)
• Scrat: "Breaking Story"
• Scrat: "News Report"
• Fox Movie Channel presents Making a Scene
• Falling for Scratte
• Buck... From Easel to Weasel
• Unearthing the Lost World
• Music Video: "Walk with the Dinosaurs"
• Activities: Scrat Pinball Game, Eggshell, Bubble Trouble

Blu-ray, + Digital Copy & DVD Copy:
Disc One:
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
• Filmmaker Commentary
• "Marley Meets Purina Puppy Chow"
• Trailers (to other Fox & MGM titles)
• Ice Age Story Maker
• 2 Scrat Shorts: "Gone Nutty-Scrats Missing Adventure" and "No Time for Nuts"
• The Sabre-Toothed Squirrel: Natures Nutty Buddy
• Scrat: From Head to Toe (Learn how to draw Scrat - Tutorial!)
• Scrat: "Breaking Story"
• Scrat: "News Report"
• Falling for Scratte
• Evolution Expedition
• Buck... From Easel to Weasel
• Unearthing the Lost World
• Music Video: "Walk with the Dinosaurs"
• 2 Unfinished Deleted Scenes
• Fox Movie Channel presents In Character with John Leguizamo
• Fox Movie Channel presents in Character with Ray Romano
• Fox Movie Channel presents in Character with Queen Latifah
• Fox Movie Channel presents Making A Scene
• Fox Movie Channel presents Making a Scene (Ice Age 2)
• BD Live Bootstrap
• Live Look up
Disc Two:
• Bonus DIGITAL COPY of the film
Disc Three:
• Widescreen standard DVD Copy (with extras)

ICE AGE: DAWN OF THE DINOSAURS — Explore:
—> DVD Review by Dean Winkelspecht »
EXCERPT: The film itself is a continuation of the successful "Ice Age" series that is one of the few non-Pixar franchises to become commercially successful in the age of computer generated animation. The first two films pulled in more than one billion dollars in combined revenue and this was nearly matched by the monstrously successful $90 million dollar third film in the franchise. Stars Ray Romano, John Leguizamo and Denis Leary return voice the characters Manny, Sid and Diego from the first two films. Chris Wedge and Alan Tudyk are other actors returning for a third "Ice Age" film. Queen Latifah, Seann William Scott and Josh Peck joined the series during the first sequel "Ice Age: Meltdown" and are joined by risings star Simon Pegg and Bill Hader for "Dawn of the Dinosaurs."

One thing that "Ice Age" films do that most Pixar productions do not is introduces popular music into the film. Was Not Was's familiar early nineties hit "Walk the Dinosaur" is used shortly, but perfectly. Lou Rawls classic seduction song "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine" is the theme between Scrat and Scratette and works perfectly. Other songs are thrown into the film and they all fit nicely and while such films like "First Knight" didn't feel right with popular music, the "Ice Age" films have typically done very good by throwing popular music into the mix. The music becomes a character and "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs" is no exception.

There has been a lot of time invested in the characters and the actors know their roles well and this third "Ice Age" film shows the amount of polish that has been thrown into the series. Unlike the third "Shrek" film which felt flat, there is still a lot of life in the "Ice Age" films and none are necessarily superior to the others. The world is massive, as are some of the characters in this film. Children and adults alike are always going to like dinosaurs and "Ice Age" has become the children's "Jurassic Park." There is a little humor thrown in for adults to enjoy and children to not fully "get" and this helps "Ice Age" hold a wide audience. A winning formula was found with these films and they are only making that formula better.

"Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs" is another solid entry in what has quietly become one of the big powerhouses in animated franchises. These three films have amassed nearly two billion dollars in box office sales and all for good reason. These movies are fun, they are entertaining and they are well written and well acted. They are beautifully animated and wonderfully scored and feature very good sound design. The "Ice Age" films are the big blockbusters of the computer animated world when it comes to action and the popcorn eating factor. They are louder and more action-packed than "Shrek" or the Pixar films. I have yet to see the second film, but I actually enjoyed this entry more than the first picture. I have no problem recommending "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs" and feel that the franchise as a whole is solid.

Even on standard definition DVD, "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs" looks amazing. Fur and textures just leap out of the screen and look detailed enough that you want to touch them and find out what they feel like. On an upconvert player, "Ice Age 3" rivals many high definition titles and a case can easily be made that DVD is far from outdated when used with good equipment. Computer animated films have always looked great on DVD and this is one of the better ones as colors are just amazing as the level of detail and the cold blues of the "Ice Age" world contrasts beautifully with the warmer hues of Lava Falls. The DVD does not come packed with the 3D version, but hopefully Fox will release a version in the future. This is a clean and perfect looking title that is one of the best looking DVDs I ever feasted my eyes on.

After watching "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs," I have found myself to be a fan of the franchise and I will be heading out within the next couple of days to buy the Blu-ray release of the first two films. This series is one of the more adventurous and entertaining animated franchises and I'd rather see a fourth film in this series than a fourth "Shrek" film and I think "Toy Story" will have a tough time rivaling the fun and entertainment of this picture.

(Click thru the Link above for the full review)

—> Visit the film's Official Site »
(from 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment)

—> View the Theatrical Trailer (w/HD) »
(from Apple.com's Trailers website)

Rated PG for some mild rude humor and peril

Film Synopsis:
When Sid's attempt to adopt three dinosaur eggs gets him abducted by their real mother to an underground lost world, his friends attempt to rescue him.

Just when you thought they couldn't get any cooler... your favorite prehistoric pals from Ice Age and Ice Age 2: The Meltdown are back in an all-new, ginormous animated adventure for ALL ages.

This time around, Manny and the herd discover a lost world of ferociously funny dinosaurs, including a cranky T-Rex who's got a score to settle with Sid. Meanwhile, Scrat goes nuts over the beautiful Scratte, but is she trying to win his heart—or steal his acorn?

Featuring an all-star voice cast, including Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary and Queen Latifah, ICE AGE: DAWN OF THE DINOSAURS delivers more thrills, more chills, and more mammoth-sized laughs for everyone!

The sub zero heroes are back. Scrat is still trying to nab the ever elusive nut, while maybe finding true love. Manny and Ellie await the birth of their mini-mammoth. Diego the saber toothed tiger wonders if he's growing too soft and Sid the sloth gets into trouble when he creates his own makeshift family by hijacking some dinosaur eggs. On a mission to rescue the hapless Sid, the gang ventures into a mysterious underground world, where they have some close encounters with dinosaurs, battle flora and fauna, run amuck and meet a relentless, one eyed, dino-hunting weasel named Buck.

Manny, Sid, Diego, and Ellie are back in this third film in the computer-animated Ice Age series. With those creatures in starring roles, fans also get another dose of the vocal talents of Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, and Queen Latifah, who are joined by Shaun of the Dead's Simon Pegg. Despite mixed reviews by critics, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs became the third highest grossing animated film of all time with $807 million worldwide.

In ICE AGE: DAWN OF THE DINOSAUR, Manny and Ellie are expecting their first baby, while Sid the sloth tries an unconventional way of starting a family that gets him into trouble. With all this talk of babies, Diego might be losing his saber-toothed edge, but a journey to save Sid may just turn the whole group into heroes. In addition to all that adventure, it wouldn't be an Ice Age film if Scrat weren't on a desperate hunt for an acorn, but he might get distracted by a shapely female squirrel.

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