Review of Remy - Ratatouille statue

Introduction

I love all Pixar movies, even Cars and Bug's Life. They all aren't perfect movies, but they've never produced a movie that I'd consider mediocre, and some, like Monsters Inc. or Toy Story, will always remain at the very top of my all time favorite film lists.

Ratatouille might be my favorite Pixar movie, the perfect compliment to another great flick, The Incredibles. In the Incredibles, we learn that if everyone is special, than no one is. That's a lesson that many modern parents need to learn. But that's not all there is to the story - Ratatouille completes the lesson by showing that while not everyone is special at everything, every one IS special at something. You just have to find what that something is.

Gentle Giant has been producing some terrific statues (maquettes, sort of) based on Pixar and Disney movies. I've already reviewed Bolt and Wall-E, and tonight I'm checking out Remy. You can pick him up for around $100, and there's a companion statue of Linguine as well.

These are a limited edition, and this time they aren't joking. Only 200 were produced, making them far rarer than most Gentle Giant products.

Packaging - ***
It's a box of course, and quite sturdy. It will do job 1 (keeping the statue safe) extremely well, but beyond that it's fairly basic. The photos do include both the actual character and the statue, but without a window you can't check it out at the store.

A very big plus is the cool Certificate of Authenticity that Gentle Giant includes with all their products. Baseball card sized, these things are collectible in their own right.

Sculpting - ***1/2
Like the previous two statues in this series, Remy's sculpt is extremely nice. Gentle Giant has made his transition from two dimensions to three pretty seamlessly, getting the proportions, style and design close to perfect.

The fur is textured nicely, with variations in thickness and density over his body. Some areas have more detailed work, while others have less, making it appear matted or thick. 

Remy is quite large, standing almost 7" tall without the base at the tip of his ear. He'll be huge compared to the Linguine should you pick him up, and he'll be out of scale with Wall-E and Bolt, but I prefer him larger in this case. An in-scale statue would simply be too small to look good on the shelf.

There's also a name plate, and the wording and symbol are etched in the background. They could have cheaped out with a tampo style print or sticker, but went the extra mile here.

Paint - ***1/2
The paint work is extremely clean, especially the always critical eyes. The lines are sharp, and they've used a nice gloss finish on them to give them that shiny wet look. They stand out from the fur and skin perfectly, adding quite a bit of visual pop to the overall presentation.

The fur could stand a bit more of a wash though, to bring out some of the detailing and texture. It's a minor gripe at best though, and holds the score back only slightly.

The paint could also be slightly cleaner on the name plate, but you'll have to look pretty close - or at close up photos - to really notice the slightly fuzzy cut lines.

Design/Quality - ***1/2
I love the dynamic nature of the pose, rather than the more traditional static pose of a normal maquette. Remy is acknowledging your presence with a wave of his hand, a big smile on his face that extends to his eyes. He's a happy rodent!

They also went with the standard black base here, similar to Bolt. However Bolt didn't have a name plate, and Wall-E did. But Wall-E didn't have the same basic black base...I'd prefer if they'd stick with one style or the other.

Value - **1/2
At $100, he's not a cheap maquette. But with such a limited run, I'm not at all surprised by the price tag. These statues are going to disappear into the hands of collectors pretty quickly, and once they do, you'll probably see them pop up only rarely, and then for an inflated price.

Things to Watch Out For -
Not a thing!

Overall - ***1/2
I have a couple minor quibbles with the paint and design, but minor is truly what they are. Any fan of the film will love this guy, and he's one of those rare statues that can stand on his own - he doesn't require a shelf full of similar items to bring out his best. Considering the woefully inadequate Ratatouille collectibles we've gotten from Disney, this is a welcome addition.

Score Recap (out of ****):
Packaging - ***
Sculpting - ***1/2
Paint - ***1/2
Design/Quality - ***1/2
Value - **1/2
Overall - ***1/2

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
I've also checked out Bolt and Wall-E in this series.

You should also hit the Search Reviews page, in case any other applicable reviews were done after this one was published.

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