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Ice Age

  • Is it age appropriate?

    About our ratings

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    Not age appropriate for kids under 4, age appropriate for kids over 6; suggested age 6.

  • Is it any good?

    4.0
  • Common Sense says

    Clever, funny, touching; like a great road movie.

Why We Rated This on for Ages 6 and Up

The good stuff

  • Messages:

    A theme of the movie

What to watch out for

  • Violence & scariness:

    None Some peril, off-screen deaths including family members of main characters
  • Sexy stuff:

    None
  • Language:

    None
  • Consumerism:

    Not an issue.
  • Drinking, drugs, & smoking:

    None

What Parents Need to Know

This review of Ice Age was written by Nell Minow

Parents need to know that the characters face peril several times throughout the movie, and it may be upsetting for younger children. The mother of a young child is killed (off-screen) saving the child?s life. Another character recalls the death of his family. While it is fairly mild on the "Bambi" scale, the issues of human hunting of animals, animal predators, and extinction are raised. A character makes a skeptical comment about "mating for life." There is some mild diaper humor.

Families Can Talk About

Talk to your kids about the media in their life. We have more tools and tips that can help
  • Families can talk about what Manny says about members of a herd being willing to risk their lives for each other. Why was it so important for Manny to return the baby, even though the humans had hunted his herd? How did that help to heal some of Manny's sadness? Why did Diego change his mind about Manny? Why did Manny change his mind about Sid? Was it because of something Sid did or because of something Manny learned about himself, or both? What is different about the way that Diego and Manny react to human attacks?
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More on Ice Age

What’s the Story?

ICE AGE is a clever, funny, and touching story of an unlikely trio of animals who band together to return a human baby to his family. The story is set when glaciers covered much of the earth, 20,000 years ago. As all of the other animals migrate south in search of food, three characters are moving in the opposite direction. They are a wooly mammoth named Manny (voice of Ray Romano), a sloth named Sid (John Leguizamo), and a saber tooth tiger named Diego (Dennis Leary). In classic road movie fashion, they don't like or trust each other very much at the beginning and the journey becomes a psychological one as they share experiences and confidences that make them see each other and themselves very differently.

Is It Any Good?

Ice Age doesn't reach the level of Shrek for wit and there is no romance to keep the grown-ups happy, and the plot has no surprises. But it's told with terrific energy, imagination, visual invention, and humor and it moves along very quickly. Interestingly, the three lead voices are provided by performers who began as stand-up comics rather than actors. Their voices are edgy and distinctive, perfectly matched with their characters.

The computer animation is truly magnificent, from the majestic ice-covered mountains to the texture of the fur and feathers, the glint of the sun on ice, and soft sparkle of the snowflakes falling at night. The pristine settings convey a sense of vastness and promise that will make grown-up viewers pause to think about whether civilization has been all that civilized. All ages will enjoy the facial expressions, body language and -- I have to say it -- performances of the ice age mammals, so vivid and so true that you may forget that they are pixels, not people.

Movie Details

Studio: Twentieth Century Fox, Director: Chris Wedge
Run time: 85 minutes
Theatrical release: 03/15/2002, DVD release: 11/26/2002
MPAA Rating: PG for peril and mild potty humor

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Our Members Say

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Most Recent Reviews

  1. Parent Reviewer
    Lives in California
    I rate this title on for age 10 and give it 4.0
    • My highlights are:
    • Positive messages

    We really enjoy this movie, good movie.

  2. I rate this title on for age 6 and give it 5.0
    • My highlights are:
    • Positive messages
    • Good role models

    great movie

    Love it but , there are some frightful scenes . so i recommend screening in advance by the individual parent .

  3. I rate this title iffy for age 6 and give it 5.0
    • My concerns are:
    • Inappropriate sexual content
    • My highlights are:
    • Positive messages
    • Good role models

    good movie! one of my favorites... couple of sly comments....

  4. I rate this title on for age 6 and give it 3.0
    • My concerns are:
    • Excessive violence

    more boys than girls

    i recomend this movie to young girls ages 6-9 and boy ages 6-11. This movie was mostly just made for young kids but i think it was aimed at boys more than girls for some peril and brief vilonce that young boys are into but young girls don't always like.

  5. I rate this title off for age 2 and give it 3.0
    • My concerns are:
    • Excessive violence

    definitely for ages 8 and up

    After watching snippets of "Ice Age 3" on a flight back to L.A., we thought our girls might like the first "Ice Age," not realizing how much violence there is in the movie. Should've checked Common Sense first! Definite moments of peril, a saber-tooth lion getting stabbed by falling ice, etc. make this a big NO for anyone younger than fourth grade, in my opinion. Too bad, because the squirrel is hilarious!

  6. Parent Reviewer
    I rate this title on for age 5 and give it 5.0
    • My highlights are:
    • Positive messages

  7. Teen Reviewer Age 13
    I rate this title on for age 7 and give it 4.0

    Great movie, the best of the trilogy. Great jokes which some kids may not get, but most of them will love it.

  8. I rate this title iffy for age 6 and give it 3.0

    a great movie that......

    this is s great movie that kids and adults will love!

  9. I rate this title on for age 4 and give it 3.0

  10. Teen Reviewer Age 13
    Lives in Oregon
    I rate this title on for age 6 and give it 4.0
    • My highlights are:
    • Positive messages
    • Good role models

    pretty good

    i like it and my little brother loves

  11. Teen Reviewer Age 14
    Lives in Ohio
    I rate this title on for age 6 and give it 3.0
    • My highlights are:
    • Positive messages

    Eh it's alright

    Eh, it's okay. Younger kids will probably enjoy it.

  12. Kid Reviewer Age 11
    Lives in Florida
    I rate this title on for age 6 and give it 4.0

    good movie

    great movie I hope the third one is as good as the first one!

  13. Adult Reviewer
    Lives in Florida
    I rate this title on for age 4 and give it 3.0
    • My concerns are:
    • Excessive violence

  14. Teen Reviewer Age 13
    Lives in Florida
    I rate this title on for age 5 and give it 3.0
    • My concerns are:
    • Excessive violence

    A good movie!!

    You got to see this. It's funny and cool at the same time. It just has a mild amout of violence like the other movie does. But it's still okay for young children!!

  15. Adult Reviewer
    Lives in New York
    I rate this title on for age 0 and give it 3.0

  16. Adult Reviewer
    Lives in New Jersey
    I rate this title on for age 2 and give it 4.0

    Excellent Kids Movie

    Worth seeing

  17. Adult Reviewer
    Lives in Maryland
    I rate this title on for age 0 and give it 3.0

  18. Teen Reviewer Age 13
    I rate this title on for age 0 and give it 5.0

    COOL

    6+ A TOTAL COMIDY

  19. Adult Reviewer
    Lives in Massachusetts
    I rate this title on for age 0 and give it 5.0

    great kids movie

    fun movie my kids 5, 9 and 11 can watch over and over. good language and lessons.

  20. Adult Reviewer
    I rate this title on for age 0 and give it 4.0

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