<Review by: Sailesh Ghelani>

Directed by Steve Martino, Mike Thurmeier. Starring Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Queen Latifah, Peter Dinklage, Aziz Ansari, Wanda Sykes, Nicki Minaj, Jennifer Lopez and many more.

What started out as a brilliant animated movie set in a unique world with rib-tickling funny characters has over the sequels turned into a rehash of old jokes and clichés. It’s still fun but not nearly as much.

Manny (Ray Romano) and his family Ellie (Queen Latifah), Peaches (Keke Palmer), Diego (Denis Leary) and Sid (John Leguizamo) are in the middle of cataclysmic changes. The Ice Age will soon give way to a continental shift as the land is torn apart by seismic disruptions that cut off Manny from Ellie and Peaches and send the prehistoric trio plus Sid’s granny (Wanda Sykes) floating away on an ice berg and yet another adventure.

Along the way, Manny the mammoth, Sid the sloth, Diego the sabre-toothed and granny the, well the feisty toothless gran, encounter Captain Gutt (Peter Dinklage) an ape who leads a ragtag band of pirates (seem to be the in-thing since Pirates of the Caribbean) out to pillage and plunder. They provide the hurdle in Manny’s quest to be reunited with his family. And Diego gets a chance at love in this one with the slinky snow tiger Shira (Jennifer Lopez) who has to choose between the pirates and the jokers!

Sid the sloth voiced by Leguizamo and Scrat (voiced by Chris Wedge) have always been favourites of mine in the series. The ingenious little side stories involving the squirrel rat and his eternal quest for acorn – usually involving earth shattering consequences – have provided us with heaps of laughs. And Sid, well his cute voice and innocent playfulness are just precious. And John Leguizamo voices him brilliantly. Apart from that everyone’s pretty much the same. Granny voiced by comedian/actress Wanda Sykes has some witty lines but in my opinion she lacks sufficient comedic bite (perhaps due to the absence of her teeth!)

It’s a silly little romp with lots of goofiness. But if you want to watch a really good animated film that involves animals stuck in ice, a lot of fun and a social message on the environment nicely tucked away then I’d recommend Happy Feet Two. As it is, Ice Age 4: Continental Drift is suitably fun, the kids should enjoy it.