At first, "Ice Age: The Meltdown" looks like the inevitable sequel to the famous 20th Century Fox animated blockbuster, trying to cash in the success of the previous movie. Well, despite being exactly that, this new adventure of the prehistoric mammals manages to stay on its own legs and delivers nothing but great fun becoming a worthy sequel. That alone is an achievement in its own right.
After some years living in peace in a new pack, our old friends Sid the sloth (John Leguizamo), Manny the Mammoth (Ray Romano) and Diego the Sabertooth tiger (Dennis Leary) discover that the ice is melting and a flood will cover the valley they now call home. Soon they organize a migration, but the trip won't be easy, specially for Manny, who begins to believe that he is the last Mammoth on earth.
"The Meltdown" continues with the style of its predecessor both in humor and animation, so those who fell in love with the original will love the sequel too. The difference however, is in the fact that now Manny is our main character. We get to know more about this character apparently anti-social and cynic, but who in the inside feels very lonely after the loss of his family. Sid and Diego make good sidekicks in this adventure and while their roles in the film are somewhat diminished, they still are very well-developed characters. Scrat, the nut-obsessed squirrel is back too in his constant quest for his lost nut, giving slapstick humor of the finest type in every scene he is in.
It is always hard for sequels to live up to the expectations, specially in family-oriented animation films, but director Carlos Saldanha and his team manage to make a funny movie that never gets boring or tiresome (something vital as it is a movie mainly oriented for kids).
While probably the story is not exactly original or complicated, writers Peter Gaulke and Gerry Swallow make up for it with good character development and funny one-liners that fit the movie tone very good. Two new characters, the young possums Crash (Sean William Scott) and Eddie (Josh Peck) are a welcomed addition to the family, as well as Ellie (Queen Latifah), the lost mammoth.
Ellie, Manny and their relationship is a very important subplot in the movie, and one that was perfectly handled by the director and his crew. While Diego's subplot was also interesting and served as basis for very good jokes, it didn't had enough screen-time; a shame in my opinion, but overall the movie was very good.
To summarize, fans of the first "Ice Age" won't be disappointed by "The Meltdown", and sure the movie will give laughs to both kids and their parents. While still not as good as the first one, this sequel breaks the "sequel's curse" and is an entertaining film on its own right. 7/10
