Ratatouille (October 12, 2007)

The original plan for Friday night had been to see the chickiest chick flick in Dublin cinemas, The Nanny Diaries. However, it was discovered that The Nanny Diaries was not playing after 4pm, which led us to a) re-evaluate the plan and b) wonder aloud who the fuck would be watching The Nanny Diaries at any time before 5pm on a week day.

No matter. The acceptable second choice was Ratatouille. Yes, The Nanny Diaries had an earlier bedtime than an animated movie about a gourmet rat. I had seen it already, but I had liked it, even while being the 7^th wheel.

And I still liked it. Quite a lot. When I originally saw it, I had had zero expectations and was blown away. It’s good for repeated viewings; I don’t think the humour holds up as well as it does in The Incredibles, but Ratatouille is far more nuanced in its message and details. I’d forgotten quite a bit of the rat community plot, and was surprised that I had since it was a) integral to the plot and b) hilariously cute. And my favourite detail I hadn’t noticed before was the Parisian health inspector’s Smart Car.

Side note: In the lobby was a poster for “Mr Magorium’s Wonder Emporium.” How long has Natalie Portman been making herself up to be Audrey Hepburn? I remember a magazine cover last year with her wearing the Breakfast at Tiffany’s dress, but I had thought that was a once-off kind of thing.

More interesting than the movie itself was the cinema we saw it in: The Savoy. The Savoy is on the upper end of O’Connell Street, which is the main street through the North side of Dublin city centre. It takes up about a block of real estate in a pretty densely packed area. If what we were sitting in was the second biggest screening room, I’m eagerly awaiting going to something in the biggest screening room, which my friends told me is used for most of the big Irish movie premieres.

In the theatre I was in, there were old school plush seats, with a matching damask curtain over a massive screen that put anything in stadium seating theatres to shame. After the previews, the curtain drew shut so that people would have time to get more refreshments or use the toilets, and reopened a few minutes later to start the movie. Cinema really and truly the way it should be seen.

Was I glad I saw it? Yep, and more importantly, I’m glad I saw The Savoy.