Ratchet and Clank

You know the best thing about superhero movies? Good guys going up against insurmountable odds to fight evil, with no care for their own well being. Isn’t that what makes them super? “Ratchet and Clank” (the movie) embodies many of the same qualities. It starts off with Chairman Drekk (Paul Giamatti) who is the leader of the Blarg alien species. His goal is to use his newly developed Deplanetizer to blow up planets of the Solana system and use his favorite pieces to make a sort of Frankenstein planet, where aliens will pay to live. He is also developing an army of Warbots to assist him in taking over certain planets. B5429 was a defective robot who, when slated for termination, escaped from Drekk’s ship to try to warn the soon to be victims of the Deplanetizer. Sadly, he crash landed on planet Veldin before he could inform anybody.

Ratchet (James Arnold Taylor) is a Lombax, a sort of cat/fox alien, and it would appear that he is the last of his kind. He works as a mechanic on Veldin, but dreams of joining the Galactic Rangers. The Rangers are a troop of heroes, spearheaded by the arrogant Captain Qwark, that go on frequent missions to save the Galaxy. Chairman Drekk is proving to be a bit much for them to handle, so they decide to hold tryouts for a new member of the team. Coincidentally, they are being held on Veldin, and Ratchet eagerly applies, but is denied membership due to his shady past. He later finds B5429 and christens him Clank (David Kaye). The two then go to find (and warn) the Galactic Rangers about Drekk’s plan and are invited to join the Rangers when they prove their usefulness. The team then sets out to save the Solana system from being destroyed.

I love the Ratchet and Clank games, and they are probably my family’s PlayStation favorites. The movie, as the trailers point out, is based on the first game, but told slightly differently. The animation in the movie is fantastic, and fans of the game will be pleased to recognize the voice of Ratchet, Clank, and Qwark from the originals. It’s a retelling of the “Ratchet and Clank” game, so some plot has changed, and there’s no way to fit the whole game into a movie, but they do it justice.

The overwhelming theme of the movie is doing what’s right. No matter if it’s hard, or unpleasant, or makes you look bad, you work for the good of others. The Rangers, for the most part, are constantly in danger and try to save innocent citizens of the galaxy from an untimely fate, to no benefit of their own. When Ratchet, displeased about the result of one of their missions, sits depressed at home, Clank comes back for him and convinces him that it doesn’t matter how he feels, but that it’s Ratchet’s duty to help. Another positive theme is that of keeping your commitments and following through with your duty.

Negative Content: Really there is really very little negativity for me to report. There is some slightly crude humor, in the form of off-screen vomiting. There are no swear words, although we do hear the bad guys throw out unkind names like “Sucker,” “Idiot,” and “Moron.” The tagline on the movie poster is slightly suggestive, saying, “Kick Some Asteroid,” and one of the weapons is called a RYNO, which we are told stands for “Rip You a New One.” Also, there is quite a bit of cartoon violence. Fantasy violence includes a lot of fighting with multiple weapons, but there is no gore or bloodshed.

The only reference to spirituality is “Amazing Grace” being played at a robot’s funeral.

***SPOILER*** One negative issue I have is that Captain Qwark, who is completely self-absorbed, betrays the Rangers out of jealousy for Ratchet’s popularity and later repents, but remains as proud and puffed up as ever. ***END SPOILER*** I feel that true repentance changes a person, and I wish the moviemakers had incorporated that.

What I love most about the movie is that it is incredibly family appropriate. There are no swear words (not even taking God’s name in vain), no sexual themes, and no alcohol/smoking. Where the games are riddled with innuendos or phrases with double meanings, the movie is surprisingly clean. In fact, I found myself searching for more faults, and had a difficult time of it.

“I just wanted to matter,” Ratchet says, upset about failing. His mentor and boss tells him, “To be a hero you don’t have to do big things, just the right ones.” That line pretty much sums up the message of the movie. Do what you know is right, no matter if you get acclaim or criticism for it. This is such a refreshing message to hear these days, in a world where we are pushed more and more to do things to conform to a society that’s full of sin and where children’s movies are full of rebellion and doing what makes you feel good. “Ratchet and Clank” is not the best quality movie story-wise, but more than makes up for it in family friendliness and positive morals.

Violence: Moderate / Profanity: None / Sex/Nudity: Minor

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