Rating: B
Beneath the streets of London, Roddy St. James is a pampered pet mouse who thinks he’s got it made. But when a sewer rat named Sid–the definition of “low life”–comes spewing out of the sink and decides it’s his turn to enjoy the lap of luxury, Roddy schemes to rid himself of the pest by luring him into the loo for a dip in the “whirlpool.” Roddy’s plan backfires when he inadvertently winds up being the one flushed away into the bustling world down below. Underground, Roddy discovers a vast metropolis, where he meets Rita, a street-wise rat who is on a mission of her own. If Roddy is going to get home, he and Rita will need to escape the clutches of the villainous Toad, who royally despises all rodents and has dispatched two hapless henchrats, Spike and Whitey, as well as his cousin–that dreaded mercenary, Le Frog–to see that Roddy and Rita are iced, literally.
Also Known As: Ratropolis
Production Status: In Production/Awaiting Release
Genres: Comedy and Animation
Running Time: 1 hr. 24 min.
Release Date: November 3, 2006 (wide)
MPAA Rating: PG for crude humor and some language.
Distributors: DreamWorks SKG
Production Co.: Aardman Animations
Studios: Dreamworks Animation
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Family Duscussion Guide
I want to encourage families to use movies as an opportunity to ask important questions about life. When done in this context, you can have fun while influencing the character and growth of your children.
- Roddy (voiced by Hugh Jackman) lived alone in a wealthy house and had no family (other rats) to relate with. Was it good for Roddy to be alone? How did Roddy feel about not having friends or family?
- There’s a scene where Roddy overhears a family discussing something, and he assumes that they were really going to do something bad to him so he stole their boat and took off very upset. What happens when we assume? How can we stop ourselves from believing something negative about someone (i.e. negative beliefs)? Help your children understand that it is always better to ask someone if what you’re thinking is true before acting on a negative belief that may be false. You can relate this back to Roddy and what happened to him when Rita finally caught up to him.
- There’s a scene at the beginning when Sid (the dirty rat) takes over the house and Roddy tries to trick him in to being flushed down the toilet. If we want someone to change or to leave us alone (perhaps a friend or neighborhood kid that isn’t being nice) how can we approach that in a positive manner? What could Roddy have done differently that might not have led him to be flushed away?
A 900-pound domesticated grizzly bear named and a scrawny, one-horned mule deer named end up stranded together in the woods during hunting season and it’s up to the duo to rally all the other forest animals and turn the tables on the hunters.
