Simon Pegg returns as the adventurous yet off-balanced weasel Buck, who was introduced in the third movie and was reduced to a cameo in the fourth.
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As always is the tradition in the ICE AGE franchise, new characters are introduced into the movie along with the retained cast. There seem to be tributes to the history of film, such as Kubrick’s monolith of “2001: A space Odyssey” or the parting of the red sea as in Cecil B. DeMille’s “Ten Commandments.’ Moreover, ‘Ice Age Collision Course” explores the profound debate about the coming-of-age of parenthood: the time when mothers and fathers have to acknowledge that their children are fully grown adults, and should be left the freedom to venture the world without their protection. “Scrat” the nut-chasing saber-toothed squirrel is back for more Chuck Jones rip-off homage, this time with a head-scratching adventure on a thawed-out UFO (yes, really) that allows them to rip off pay homage to Duck Dodgers. ICE AGE COLLISION COURSE will satisfy its young fan base and is bound to make a ton of money, but at this point, the series is less an artistic pursuit and more a business deal.
And that also explains why we keep getting additional installments of franchises like Ice Age, Madagascar, Kung Fu Panda, and the like – because for a certain age of viewer, if it’s new, they’re through. They must find their way back to each other on a hostile planet controlled by a villain played by an nearly unrecognizable Idris Elba. Shaggy mammoth characters stand alongside short-haired animals, and now, there are Dino-Birds that have scales and feathers.
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With Ice Age a major draw for families and Lights Out poised to scare up major profits, this should be a stellar weekend overall. The multi-level game is set against the backdrop of various scenes from the film and lets users select one of four Ice Age hero characters. So with an hour and 40 minutes in the show, there is enough characters around which the screenplay roams around, not to mention the wedding that our hero Mammoth Manny tries to contemplate and the very much humane touch to the emotions takes the movie to an all new level, maybe best to keep the franchise going.
