‘Ratchet & Clank’ is Finally a Video Game Adaptation You’ll Enjoy

When I first heard of a Ratchet & Clank adaptation of the PlayStation 2 video game, I thought it was far too-little-too-late. Who wants to see a movie about a 15-year-old game? We had seen video game adaptations like Super Mario Bros., Doom, Final Fantasy, Double Dragon, DOA: Dead or Alive and an endless list of live-action or animated features that went absolutely nowhere, they were bland, boring and completely veered off course from the source material.

As I sat in the theater and lights from the projector flickered I realized that, “Holy Sh!t! Kevin Munroe (director) got it right!” Ratchet & Clank is finally a video game adaptation that is worth watching.

Munroe and company worked closely with the video game producers at Insomniac Games, incorporating scenes from the latest incarnation for the PS4 and the story of the original classic game to give audiences an animated feature that sucks you into the story, making you almost forget you are watching an animated feature.

The story follows an orphan named Ratchet (James Arnold Taylor), who wants nothing more than to join up with Captain Qwark (Jim Ward) and the rest of the Galactic Rangers to help protect the Solana Galaxy. The problem is, Ratchet’s adopted father, Grimroth (John Goodman) doesn’t want the little guy getting his hopes up and to dream small.

On the outskirts of the solar system, Chairman Drek (Paul Giamatti) along with Dr. Nefarious (Armin Shimerman) and Victor Von Ion (Sylvester Stallone) are creating a robot army to help build an ideal new home world for the chairman while destroying various planets throughout the galaxy. During the creation process there is a power surge that builds a defective bot with full consciousness called Clank (David Kaye), who escapes termination, finds his way to Ratchet, joining the Galactic Rangers and allowing for the real adventure to begin.

What is absolutely great about Ratchet & Clank is that neither you, nor your kids have to be familiar with the video game property. This is a fun origin story that the entire family can sit together without worrying about inappropriate humor like how certain animated films have been doing in recent years.

The blend of the the cast from the original video game series like Taylor and Kaye along with other feature film actors such as Bella Thorne, who voices Cora and Rosario Dawson as Elaris, found its balance for a broader audience.

Ratchet & Clank is an hour and 34 minute joy ride that everyone can  suspend disbelieve and watch time-and-time-again whether in the theaters or when the Blu-Ray finally drops.

Ratchet & Clank opens nationwide on Friday, April 29, 2016.