Hello everyone. Since a bout of information (including trailers, behind-the-scenes clips, etc…)
on the film, Ratatouille, has been released as of late, I felt it safe enough to
discuss the apparent similarities and differences between the personality of Remy and the actions of those of
real rats…
Why am I doing this? Because I’m a hopelss ubber-geek, that’s why. That, and I was feeling
posty again today. Happy rat…er…reading!
Introduction -
One of the first things you
notice about Remy is his apparent physical features – eyes, nose, ears, fur distribution, and even whiskers. But
then you also notice a sub-delicacy about each individual part: they all fit together perfectly like a jigsaw
puzzle: each limb, the placement of hair, and every whisker is creatively situated so as to give a particular
feel of density and volume to the character, making him undeniably believeable.
Once you’ve gotten past
the physical factors, another connection pops into place: action and build. The way a rat moves connotates a very
fluid, yet solid, movement about it that is easily observable in all animals; however, each and every organism
has their own unique way of protruding mobility in the world. Rats, in this case, exhibit an air of jittery-ness,
a quick pace, and an overall aura of inquistiveness in their actions. You can also view these acts of a rat’s
nature in the many actions and poses of Remy.
Taking into account these two features – build and mobility
– let us take a closer look at the world of Remy and rats in general…
There are
many basic comparisons and contrasts between that of Remy and his rodent counterparts, namely his facial features
and body parts: limbs, tail, ears, etc…
Physical Features -
Ears - Remy’s ears are identifiably almost exactly the same as a real
rats’ ears, with the exception of density: Remy’s ears are a little thicker than is usual; a real rat’s ears
are light, translucent, thin, and fragile. Fuzz on the back and tip of the ears are also apparent on Remy’s
ears, a feature typical of a rat.
The way Remy expresses his emotions through his ears’ movements are
also a common, typical feature that is exhibited in rodents and animals of all “ethnicities”.
Nose - Remy’s round and protruding nose is quite different than that of his
real whiskered comrades, both in shape and in texture. While a real rats’ nose curves inward, Remy’s juts out
in a cartoon-y fashion.
Eyes - A real rats’ eyes are small and beady,
whilst Remy’s are large and expressive; his pupils are also more apparent.
[u]Paws and Back
Feet[/u] - Perhaps one of the most distinctive feature about a rat is its paws, and this is also one
of the main features Remy exhibits which is rather different than that of a real rat. Unlike a typical rat, Remy
does not contain any claws on his paws, nor are his paws even that reminiscent of a real rat. The tips of his
fingers bulge at the tip, and his hands are overall more like a human’s. His back feet are also rather bulbous,
but they do closely resemble that of a real rats’ hind feet.
Tail - One
thing that I noticed about Remy’s tail in the teaser trailer is that it is actually
smaller than a real rats’ tail. A rat’s tail can be as long as its body, while Remy’s little protrusion is
only half as long as he is. The “rings” on Remy’s tail also aren’t as noticeable/apparent as those of
real rat would be.
Mannerisms -
The mannerisms and actions
of Remy are pretty much right-on-the-money compared to that of a real rat.
Jumping - Crouching in preparation for the jump, and pushing up from the
back feet, before actually making the leap and landing are all beautifully portrayed in this shot. Compared to
the jumping action of a real rat, you can obviously see the similarites:
[b]Courtesy of
Disney/Pixar[/b]
[img]http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Mitch-el/Ratatouille/pose3
.jpg[/img]
[b]Courtesy of
Disney/Pixar[/b]
[img]http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Mitch-el/ratpose1.jpg[/img
]
Courtesy of www.petrats.org.uk/
Crouching - The crouching position of a rat in comparison to Remy tenderly
backing up is apparent:
[b]Courtesy of
Disney/Pixar[/b]
[img]http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Mitch-el/ratpose2.jpg[/img
]
Courtesy of www.petrats.org.uk/
Pleading - The obvious panicky nature of Remy as he is about to be disposed
of in the Seine indicates a pleading nature and several mannerisms that are also seen in the actions of real rats
when they express fear or uncertainty:
[b:dd8
e7d02e1]Courtesy of Disney/Pixar[/b]
Pleasure - A deep feeling of
“contentedness” or a joyful emotion is seen in the personalities and actions of both Remy and that of
real rats.
Courtesy of Disney/Pixar
[b:dd8e7d02
e1]Courtesy of www.petrats.org.uk/[/b]
Curiosity - Rats will
exhibit an inquisitive personality constantly during their short life-time, and it’s no different with Remy.
[img]http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Mitch-el/Ratatouille/remypose.jpg[/img
]
[b]Courtesy of
Disney/Pixar[/b]
[img]http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o141/Mitch-el/ratpose3.jpg[/img
]
Courtesy of www.petrats.org.uk/
After
observing a compressed overview of the many similarities and several differences between that of Remy and his
ratty counterparts, one may better appreciate how much research the [i]Pixar Animation
Studios[/i] crew really studied and contributed to the final production of
Ratatouille.
I really wish I could have gotten more pictures, but my tired
state held me against it. (heheh)
[b]All rat photos are copyright
www.petrats.org.uk/[/b].
[b]All
Ratatouille photos are courtesy of Disney/Pixar[/b].
