To say Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs was a surprise superhit in the movie theatres would be an understatement.
Defying the law of diminishing returns the film, which is now is a top seller in the DVD and Blu-ray versions in North America, made more money than its predecessors. Its worldwide $882 million gross was next only to the top-grossing film of the year so far, the latest Harry Potter saga that grabbed $930 million. While the latter cost over $200 million, Ice Age 3 was made for about $90 million.
Given the fact that about 80 percent of Ice Age 3 grosses came from outside of America and Canada, the DVD and Blu-ray editions could have a sensational success across the globe.
Distributor Fox launched the DVD and Blu-ray editions with a catchy grab-me line: 'Just when you thought they couldn't get any cooler... your favourite prehistoric pals from Ice Age and Ice Age 2: The Meltdown are back in an all-new, ginormous animated adventure for all ages.'
There is plenty of fun for the entire family in the two-disc version; the various featurettes in the second disc detailing adventures with Scrat, one of the film's most prominent characters, have given the package quite an appeal.
Some fans, though, grumble the two-disc packet is not really great. Besides, it costs more than the single disc featuring the movie. But on the whole, the two-disc packet seems to have hit the bulls eye.
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs has most of the characters that made the first two films huge hits. Manny (voiced by Ray Romano) and his mate Ellie (Queen Latifah) are expecting a baby mammoth. But Sid the sloth (John Leguizamo) and Diego the saber-toothed tiger (Denis Leary) are not really happy; they feel left out. Diego decides to go his own way, while Sid adopts three dinosaur eggs but little does he suspect the stolen material will get him into deep trouble.
Among the new characters in Ice Age 3 are Simon Pegg as Buck, a weasel who has been living alone in the dinosaur world and the crusty mother T-Rex, who wants to protect her babies and eggs from the likes of Sid. Then there's Scratte, the female flying squirrel that rocks and upsets Scrat's world. The two start out as rivals as she tries to get Scrat part from his beloved acorn, but it soon turns into a love affair.
The smaller viewers would be wondering if Scratte really loves Scrat.
The adventures and problems Scrat goes through offer quite some laugh, and hence a disc dedicated to him. The Scrat Pack in the double DVD package also contains a featurette on his creation and instructions on how to draw him.
It is fun to watch this DVD by itself. People, who are watching it for the first time, will enjoy it too. But to enhance the pleasure, see the first two films on DVD, and then watch this triumphant addition to the series.
The huge success of Ice Age 3 has proved that Pixar is not the only big name in animated films. As reviewer Bret Fetzer rightly declared, 'Let Pixar tug at our heartstrings; Ice Age aims to tickle the funny bone and does a fine job of it.'
