BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | The Ratchet & Clank games have been around for 14 years. There is a new generation of potential fans who aren’t even old to remember the original game when it came out, and there is a new generation of technology that far surpasses the old PlayStation 2, where the duo first appeared. The games are being rebooted this month with a new installment for PlayStation 4, and an animated feature film is now in theaters to introduce the franchise to a wider audience.
Ratchet is a “Lombax,” an anthropomorphic space cat. He works as a lowly mechanic, but dreams of joining the heroic Galactic Rangers. Meanwhile, an evil alien race called the Blarg are building an army of robot soldiers as part of a mysterious-but-definitely-sinister plan. Clank is a tiny, defective robot who is kicked out of the Blarg army, not just because he’s small, but also because he opposes their fiendish scheme.
Ratchet and Clank meet by chance, then team up to warn the Galactic Rangers about the Blarg. Clank is out to save the universe, but Ratchet sees this as his chance to impress the Rangers and fight alongside their leader, the heroic Captain Qwark.
The Ratchet & Clank games are well-written comedy adventures that don’t take themselves too seriously. Among game franchises, it is an excellent choice for a film adaptation. One of the screenwriters, TJ Fixman, actually wrote for the games, and the voice actors who play Ratchet and Clank in the games (James Arnold Taylor and David Kaye) play them in the movie. Several other voice actors from the games reprise their roles too, including Jim Ward’s hilarious Captain Qwark, and Armin Shimerman as the delightfully insane villain Dr. Nefarious.
The film adds in a handful of new characters, expanding the roster of the Galactic Rangers with celebrity cameos. It also makes much ado about Sylvester Stallone’s bit part as a giant evil robot. Most of the Hollywood names are unnecessary, and their characters are just supporting roles. They are upstaged entirely by the talented duo of Taylor and Kaye. The notable exception is Paul Giamatti as the blustering leader of the Blarg. He hams it up as a villain who is in charge of a barely competent army (although a more genuinely dangerous villain appears in the later half of the story).
“Ratchet & Clank” works best as a comedy; neither Ratchet nor Clank have much of a character arc. In fact, the supporting role, Captain Qwark, has the most interesting emotional journey. Because the story liberally borrows from the plot of the first game, fans will be one step ahead of the characters the whole time, too. There’s still lots of laughs to be had, and some insider gags for PlayStation enthusiasts (was that a Sly Cooper cameo?). People who have never heard of these characters before will still find an abundance of goofy humor that doesn’t require previous knowledge of the franchise to appreciate.
Directed by Jericca Cleland and Kevin Munroe. Screenplay by TJ Fixman, Kevin Munroe and Gerry Swallow. Runtime: 94 minutes. At various Manhattan locations, including standard and 3D screenings at AMC Village 7 (66 Third Ave., at 11th St.) and Regal Battery Park Stadium 11 (102 North End Ave., at Vesey St.). Follow twitter.com/RatchetMovie.
