Ratchet & Clank

Based on the popular PlayStation video game franchise, this CGI-animated film is an uninspired tale featuring galactic heroes, a menacing mega-weapon, and a bunch of aliens voiced by celebrities. Rocket mechanic Ratchet (voiced by James Arnold Taylor) is a Lombax—a sort of feline/squirrel with a tail similar to a lion—while his brainy, pint-sized buddy Clank (David Kaye) is a mellifluous, good-hearted robot who Ratchet saved from the junkyard. Ratchet yearns to join an elite group called the Galactic Rangers (including Rosario Dawson and Bella Thorne), which is led by the egotistical, lantern-jawed Captain Qwark (Jim Ward). Ratchet's chance comes when he's forced to defend his home—along with all of the other planets in the Solana Galaxy—from destruction by a sinister Blarg known as Chairman Drek (Paul Giamatti), and the latter's cohorts: ruthless Victor Von Ion (Sylvester Stallone) and ex-Ranger mad scientist sidekick, Dr. Nefarious (Armin Shimerman). Ratchet & Clank is frantically directed by Kevin Munroe and Jericca Cleland, who try to use blaring sound and blinding color to distract from the fact that the underdog plot is stale and the dialogue is blandly generic. Buy the highly praised reboot video game instead. Not recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include the behind-the-scenes featurettes “A Hero's Journey” (8 min.) and “Leveling Up” (5 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are bonus DVD, digital, and UltraViolet copies of the film. Bottom line: a small extras package for a bland film adaptation of a superior video game.] (S. Granger)