Ice Age (2002)

Set during the Ice Age, a sabertooth tiger, a sloth, and a wooly mammoth find a lost human infant, and they try to return him to his tribe.

Directors:

Chris Wedge, Carlos Saldanha

Writers:

Michael J. Wilson (story), Michael Berg (screenplay),

Stars:

Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 4 wins & 23 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ray Romano	...	Manfred (voice)
John Leguizamo	...	Sid (voice)
Denis Leary	...	Diego (voice)
Goran Visnjic	...	Soto (voice)
Jack Black	...	Zeke (voice)
Cedric the Entertainer	...	Carl (voice)
Stephen Root	...	Frank / Start (voice)
Diedrich Bader	...	Saber-Toothed Tiger (voice)
Alan Tudyk	...	Lenny / Oscar / Dab (voice)
Lorri Bagley	...	Jennifer (voice)
Jane Krakowski	...	Rachel (voice)
Peter Ackerman	...	Dodo / Macrauchenia (voice)
P.J. Benjamin	...	Dodo (voice)
Josh Hamilton	...	Dodo / Aardvark (voice)
Chris Wedge	...	Dodo / Scrat (voice)

Storyline

Back when the Earth was being overrun by glaciers, and animals were scurrying to save themselves from the upcoming Ice Age, a sloth named Sid, a woolly mammoth named Manny, and a saber-toothed tiger named Diego are forced to become unlikely heroes. The three reluctantly come together when they have to return a human child to its father while braving the deadly elements of the impending Ice Age.

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Plot Keywords:

baby | ice age | ice | sloth | sabertooth tiger | 

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Taglines:

They came. They thawed. They conquered.

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Genres:

Animation | Adventure | Comedy | Family

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for mild peril

Details

Official Sites:

20th Century Fox [France] Twentieth Century Fox [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English Croatian

Release Date:

15 March 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

La era de hielo

Box Office

Budget:

$59,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$357,575 (Japan) (9 August 2002)

Gross:

$4,158,805 (Japan) (30 August 2002)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, Blue Sky Studios, Twentieth Century Fox Animation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

81 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Chris Wedge regrets that he didn't get the bunny from his short Bunny into the film as an easter egg.

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Goofs

In the rain scene, when Sid asks Manny "So what about you? You have family?", Manny turns away from Sid. The camera is on Sid in this duration, so we don't get to see Manny turning. The shelter is so small and snug, it should be impossible for a mammoth to turn around without first coming out.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Freaky Mammal: Well, why don't they call it The Big Chill? Or The Nippy Era? I'm just sayin', how do we know it's an Ice Age?
Freaky Mammal: Because, of all...
[shouts]
Freaky Mammal: the *ice*!
Freaky Mammal: Well, things just got a little chillier.

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Crazy Credits

Drawings of the creatures appear over the credits. Most drawings were done by children of Blue Sky Studios employees.

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Connections

Referenced in Troldspejlet: Episode #33.11 (2005)

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Soundtracks

"Sound Off (Duckworth Chant)"
Written by Willie Lee Duckworth (as Willie Duckworth) and Bernard Lentz

User Reviews

cute, clever, entertaining

`Ice Age' emerges as one of the better animated films of recent years, cleverly designed and even more cleverly written. Scenarists Michael Berg, Michael J. Wilson and Peter Ackerman have devised a story set 20,000 years ago about an unlikely trio of companions who find themselves making a long trek through a harsh environment in an effort, ostensibly, to return a baby human to the tribe from which he has become separated. The triumvirate is made up of a deadpan, cynical mammoth, a wisecracking, over-the-top sloth (whose mile-a-minute mouth more than makes up for his legendary slowness) and a malevolent saber-tooth tiger, who learns a thing or two about friendship and teamwork before the adventure is over.

`Ice Age' is at its most amusing in those scenes in which the characters make prescient jokes about their own place in the evolutionary scheme of things. One particularly clever scene involves the three travelers discovering what looks like an underground museum of natural history encased in ice, replete with ancient creatures caught in naturally occurring, chain-of-life exhibits. Like most animated films set in the past, `Ice Age' derives much of its humor through the use of anachronism. We chuckle to hear these creatures applying modern, scientific knowledge to the pre-scientific era in which they are living.

The animators and designers have done a beautiful job in achieving just the right look for this tale. The backgrounds have a colorful, clean, streamlined look to them, and the animals themselves, in their appearance and design, provide a witty commentary on evolutionary history. Ray Romano, John Leguizamo and Denis Leary do superb voiceover work, each achieving just the right tone for the character he has been assigned to play. One could wish, perhaps, for a bit less sentimentality at the end, but that is a minor quibble in a film that works so well for both children and adults. The kids will revel in the cuteness of the animals and the clever action sequences, while adults will savor the sly knowingness of the evolutionary and historical in-jokes. Not bad in an era when most films can't find a way to please even ONE audience demographic.