Critics Consensus

Critics Consensus: Ice Age: Continental Drift 3D Is Lukewarm

Plus, Salute and The Imposter are sharp documentaries.

by | July 12, 2012 | Comments

This week at the movies, we’ve got only one new wide release: Ice Age: Continental Drift 3D, featuring voice work from Ray Romano, Denis Leary and John Leguizamo What do the critics have to say?

Ice Age: Continental Drift 3D

37%

With the exception of its first installment, the Ice Age franchise has never been a critical darling. That trend that continues with Ice Age: Continental Drift 3D, which critics say has moments of charm and witty slapstick but often seems content to recycle ideas from the previous films. This time out, Scrat the saber-toothed squirrel triggers a continental rift thanks to his irrepressible search for acorns. Meanwhile, Manny the mammoth, Sid the sloth, and Diego the sabre-toothed cat find themselves on the run from pirate apes. The pundits say Ice Age: Continental Drift 3D looks terrific and features a handful of decent gags, but for the most part it’s a mediocre affair that’s only occasionally inspired.

Also opening this week in limited release:

  • The Imposter, a doc about the mysterious return of a missing Texas teenager, is at 96 percent.

  • Ballplayer: Pelotero, doc about the struggles of a pair of Dominican baseball prospects, is at 92 percent.

  • The Greek import Alps, an absurdist dramedy about an organization that helps console grieving people by masquerading as their loved ones, is at 88 percent.

  • Farewell, My Queen, starring Diane Kruger in a historical drama about the last days of Marie Antoinette, is at 85 percent.

  • Easy Money, the pulpy tale of three interconnected men who venture into the Swedish criminal underworld, is at 84 percent.

  • Trishna, starring Freida Pinto in a reimagining of Thomas Hardy’s Tess of the D’Ubervilles set in India, is at 74 percent (check out our interview with director Michael Winterbottom here).

  • Union Square, starring Mira Sorvino in a drama about two sisters who have an uneasy reunion, is at 62 percent.

  • Red Lights, starring Robert De Niro and Sigourney Weaver in a psychological thriller about paranormal researchers who encounter a sinister psychic, is at 38 percent.

  • Blind Revenge, starring Daryl Hannah in a thriller about a novelist whose caretaker harbors a dark secret, is at 15 percent.