Sub zero heroes are back for another adventure

THE sub-zero heroes from the worldwide blockbusters Ice Age and Ice Age: The Meltdown are back for another incredible adventure in Dawn of the Dinosaurs.

Scrat is still trying to nab the ever-elusive nut (while, maybe, finding true love); Manny and Ellie await the birth of their mini-mammoth; Sid the sloth gets into trouble when he creates his own makeshift family after finding some dinosaur eggs and Diego the sabre toothed tiger wonders if he's growing too 'soft' hanging with his pals.

On a mission to rescue the hapless Sid, the gang ventures into a mysterious underground world, where they have some close encounters with dinosaurs, battle flora and fauna, run amok and meet a relentless, one-eyed, dino hunting weasel named Buck.

Ice Age 3 has everything audiences loved about the first two films, adding even more comedy, action, spectacular visuals plus the movie magic of 3-D. Our beloved heroes live on, with some memorable new characters thrown into the Ice Age mix.

Also new to the Ice Age franchise is an incredible and immense underground world populated by dinosaurs. The lush world provides a sharp contrast to the wintry environs of the first two Ice Age films and dwarfs even the vastness of the above ground Ice Age.

It's a land of danger, massive creatures, mammal-eating plants, a daredevil weasel, a wily romantic foil for Scrat, named Scratte and areas with names like the Chasm of Death, and the Plates of Woe.

Even Manny the Mammoth — the B.M.O.C. (Big Mammal on Campus) in Ice Age — feels small in this immense world.

"When the dinosaurs show up, Manny is no longer 'king of the jungle,'" says comedy legend Ray Romano, who returns as the voice of the most famous cinematic woolly mammoth.

A billion dollar franchise at the box office, I fully expect this third instalment to keep children and adults highly amused when it opens in cinemas this week.

It is showing in both traditional 2-D and for those that prefer their onscreen action right in their lap check it out on 3-D.

This engaging and entertaining 3-D cartoon is sure to give the likes of Transformers 2 and Harry Potter 6 a run for their money at the box office as it will keep both adults and children rapt with attention.

Cert: U

Web: www.iceagemovie.com

Duration: 93 mins