Movie Review: Ratatouille (2007)

Synopsis.

Remy lives in a French country house with his pack, led by his father Django. Unlike his kin, Remy is a foodie. His innate ability to smell ingredients in food is unappreciated by the pack, who use him as poison sniffer. Remy has been sneaking alone into the kitchen, reading from the cookbook of his hero: the Parisian chef Auguste Gusteau (who had died after a brutal review by food critic Anton Ego).

An attempt to burgle spices from the kitchen with his brother Emile is short-lived when its occupant, an old woman named Mabel, wakes and discovers the rat pack. The rats escape, but Remy is separated from his family. Lonely, Remy imagines talking with Gusteau, who guides and comforts him. Remy finds Gusteau's restaurant, which has fallen on hard times since Gusteau's death. It has been taken over by Gusteau's sous-chef, Skinner, who has sold out Gusteau's image to sell microwavable food products.

Gusteau's has hired a new garbage boy, Linguini, for whom Skinner has no respect. Unknown to both Skinner and the boy is the fact that Linguini is Gusteau's son. Remy watches in horror as Linguini attempts to fix a soup he spilled by filling it with random ingredients. He enters the kitchen and fixes the soup properly. Linguini sees Remy, but is then scolded by Skinner, who realizes, not only that Linguini had been cooking, but that the soup had been given to a food critic, Solene LeClaire. To Skinner's surprise, she finds it delicious. Another chef, Colette, convinces Skinner not to fire Linguini, and Skinner agrees as long as Linguini can recreate "his" soup.

The rest of the cooking staff then discover Remy and Skinner orders Linguini to take him away and kill him, lest people discover that the kitchen has rats. Linguini discovers that Remy can understand him, and they agree to work together secretly, so that Linguini can keep his job and Remy can cook.

The next day, Skinner sets Linguini to work. Remy discovers he can control Linguini like a marionette by pulling hairs under his hat. After some practice at Linguini's small apartment, Remy uses Linguini to remake the soup, and Linguini is fully promoted to chef. Later, Skinner discovers Linguini's heritage. He fears that if Linguini finds out, the restaurant will go to him (as specified in Gusteau's will) instead of Skinner.

While trying to save face after an embarrassing incident, Linguini nearly tells Colette about Remy, but instead kisses her. They fall in love.

One night, Remy's brother appears to him, and takes him down to the new home of his pack. Remy fights with Django over his desire to cook, then he starts scrounging food from the restaurant kitchen for Emile and an ever-growing number of friends. He discovers documents concerning Linguini and his place in Gusteau's will, and, eluding Skinner, gives the documents to Linguini, who fires Skinner. Linguini becomes a rising star in the culinary world. Anton Ego is surprised that Gusteau's has recovered from his review. Skinner becomes suspicious of Linguini's success, and the occasional glimpse of Remy convinces him that he is responsible.

Linguini and Remy have a temporary falling-out, due to Linguini's inability to credit Remy for his success and the revelation that Remy had been stealing food. Skinner captures Remy, wanting him to create a line of microwavable products, lest Remy gets killed. With the help of his pack, Remy escapes and heads back to the restaurant. Linguini, who was unable to handle the kitchen, protects Remy from the alarmed staff and explains the entire ruse. All the chefs walk out except for Colette, but with Remy's help, the rats take over the job. Ego reviews the restaurant that night, and Remy serves him a dish of ratatouille, which reminds Ego of his childhood and warms his heart. Ego wishes to meet the chef, and eventually has the story explained to him and witnesses the cooking rats. Surprisingly, he writes a positive review.

Unfortunately, the rat-filled kitchen was witnessed by both Skinner and a health inspector and Gusteau's is shut down forever (and Ego loses his credibility and job). Linguini, Colette, and Remy open a new restaurant called "La Ratatouille." Ego is an investor in the restaurant, and Remy's pack lives in the restaurant's ceiling, eating fine food.

Check the movie credits on IMDB

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