The above video is the video version of the review. But it does have some visual problems like moments of Extreme Pixelation and Reduced Resolutions due to the rendering software. For those outside the US & Canada use the below video.
Well it’s been almost 3-years since Ratchet & Clank released in theaters back in 2016. And now is the time for me to review it. To be clear this’ll be my 1st time reviewing a film. Now before I actually start the review I want to point a few things out.
- I have seen the film, obviously.
- I have Not played the PS4 or PS3 Ratchet & Clank games
- In preparation for the review I made sure to play the PS2 quad-rilogy of R&C games, watch any & all cutscenes & gameplay from the other games. For reference and comparison reasons.
Alright let’s get right into it.
Ratchet & Clank is a great film that is very faithful adaptation of the game series. Everything from the world’s, characters, voices, charm & more are perfectly captured with the film’s great CG quality. Which makes for some great set-pieces not seen in the game.
Story:
The story itself is similar to the original game and it’s PS4 Re-Imagining, but a simplified version of those stories. Now your not going to see the over 20-locations from the game in the film, so they went with 5-main locations (Veldin, Quartu, Aleero City, Deplanetizer & Starship Pheonix).
Now because of this it kind of lacked in some areas. Like the absence of the Blargian Snagglebeast for instance, which is still one of the highlights from the original game & the re-imagining. Could’ve added a Lot to this film, since almost every Ratchet & Clank title includes a giant creature of some sort.
Anyways, some scenes are exclusive to the film and are Not part of the Re-imagining. Such as Ratchet having to stop an out-of-control ship through the canyon because he made modifications instead of repairs like he’s supposed to. Or Ratchet forgetting to install certain software on the ship, which ultimately goes wrong. Causing a hilarious reaction from Captain Qwark.
Now some said that the film had three main problems with it’s story;
- Film’s pacing and fast character introduction
- Ratchet & Clank’s sudden friendship compared to the original
- Captain Qwark’s betrayal done better in original game
Now I didn’t really have a problem with any of these. As it did take a good while to introduce Clank & Dr. Nefarious.
As for Ratchet & Clank’s friendship in the film, I didn’t really have a problem with it. As it was a similar introduction in the original game. However about half-way through the game, after Clank unknowingly helped Qwark trick both of them into the Snagglebeast’s lair. This is when Ratchet & Clank’s friendship pretty much fell apart, with Ratchet disliking Clank through almost the rest of the game.
While in the film there’s only one instance of the duo disliking each other and that was when Clank caught Ratchet contradicting himself about knowing the Galactic Rangers (a story element from R&C 3 along with Dr. Nefarious). And Qwark having nothing to do with it, but his betrayal scenes were hilarious. Especially the not quite final battle scene between Ratchet & Clank Vs. Qwark. And eventually Dr. Nefarious, which him & Qwark go into a conversation about a combo joke, which was meant to be a one-liner.
And the film ended just like the original did with the duo walking into the distance. Plus there are mid & end credits scenes, which I’ll discuss later in the review.
The film did lack in some areas like humor & deeper story elements. Was probably because T.J. Fixman’s (R&C Future series writer) script had some changes to it.
Characters:
The characters from the games, most of them keep the same voice cast and personality from the games. Including Ratchet, Clank, Qwark & Dr. Nefarious. While others like Dallas & Juanita (both from Deadlocked) Drek & Victor (Drek’s robotic lieutenant from the original game on Planet Eudora) have new voices and personality changes.
Ratchet is almost identical to his main series counterpart. Except when he landed on Veldin, he became under the care of Grimroth (John Goodman, Monsters Inc./University). Then later on Ratchet became the adventurous, mechanic like in the games. Who later joins the Galactic Rangers. But one scene that’s out of place and close to the start of the film, for Ratchet’s personality is where Ratchet is trying to convince Grim to let him go to the Ranger tryouts. In which Grim calls Ratchet “careless”, but Ratchet prefers “carefree”. Now it’s a funny scene, but that’s not how the game version of Ratchet is. Looking past that, Ratchet’s personality becomes like that of the games later on in the film.
Clank is created in a warbot factory on Planet Quartu, just like the original. Now like Ratchet’s personality, Clank’s hasn’t really changed and is basically just like the games. Except the fact that he’s a little more worry-some in the film, like Bentley from the Sly Cooper series.
Captain Qwark’s overall character is completely intact in the film. Almost nothing about the character was changed. And like the games, the majority of the humor comes from Qwark and he is also Nefarious’ nemesis.
Dr. Nefarious is seen in his organic form in the film, which we haven’t seen since R&C 3 in the (inaccurate) Qwark vid-comics. What’s interesting about Nefarious in the film is that he is Drek’s scientist and then later betrays Drek by turning him into a sheep. Via the sheepinator from R&C 2, which also appeared in the PS4 game. Therefore making him the film’s true villain. Once again Dr. Nefarious’ character is almost unchanged, including his N-Sane (Crash Bandicoot joke intended) personality. Now we do see his robotic form in the mid-credits scene, which is easily the best scene in the film (which possibly hinted at a sequel or continuation). The scene didn’t make it into the PS4 game, interesting enough this is the same planet (Umbris) where Qwark betrayed Ratchet & Clank in the original.
Drek is more of a goofy character this time around as opposed to the more serious personality of the original. But his original character does show in certain scenes.
Victor was unnamed in the original and was more of a coward, while in this appearance he is much different.
Dallas & Juanita are news reporters just like they were in Deadlocked.
Then there are the new characters; Cora, Elaris and Brax. Who are all Galactic Rangers and have more screen-time in the film than the game.
Now I think Lawrence would’ve been perfect in the film, rather than Zed. As Lawrence has always appeared with Dr. Nefarious and having him absent here is rather odd. Because both characters add onto each others humor.
The Plumber appears in the film, as well as in the end-credits scene. I believe he has a different voice actor as well.
Music:
The films soundtrack does match the series & the film really well. But the R&C game soundtracks are definitely superior to the film’s score. Now the film’s credits did feature the song “Bad News Travels Fast”, which was previously used in a music video for the film by Rainmaker’s YouTube Channel. Which kind of fit given the mid credits scene.
References & Easter Eggs:
These are literally scattered throughout the film. They include a number of references & cameos to the Ratchet & Clank series (Neftin Prog/Into The Nexus, President Phyronix/ R&C 3, Skid/PS2 series & PS4), fellow Playstation franchises Sly Cooper and Jak & Daxter, Insomniac’s Dan Johnson, Playstation itself and even the an interesting use of the wilhelm scream. Plus so many more (that this page would be ridiculously long) including references to events from Quest For Booty & A Crack In Time.
Deleted Scenes:
Now these deleted scenes (these are Not all of them, I think) came with the French Blu-Ray release of the Ratchet & Clank Movie. Which T.J. Fixman’s original script was likely used for these because of the humor & darker moments that existed in them. Some of them are extended or unfinished versions of what’s already in the film. But my personal favorite of them is the Qwark and the Water Cooler scene.
Okay everyone. That was a Long, 1st time review for a film. So with the hour and a-half runtime, Ratchet & Clank delivers a Lot to the fans. And I personally have a great time with it every time I watch it. So I’d give it about an 8.5, as the film has a few small problems. It’s already a great film, nicely animated, great voice acting & set-pieces. But some things could’ve been done a little better. It’s above The Angry Birds Movie as my favorite video game film though.
And I’m wondering why I even bothered making comparison’s to the Ratchet & Clank games. Because the film is somewhat canon to the main series. According to the Ratchet & Clank Wiki.
So anyways guys I really hope you enjoyed my review of the Ratchet & Clank Movie. And hopefully I can do more reviews like this in the future, but only once in awhile.
Anyways, What do you guys think about this? Do you want me to do more reviews in the future? And what did you think about the film? Be sure to let me know what you think in the comments below.
That’s about all I got for now, so stay tuned for more video gaming news coming to you at the speed of sound. Don’t forget to Like, Comment, Subscribe, Share or Follow for more videos & articles, as I’ve got more on the way. Until then you can catch me over at these places,
YouTube Channel:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCK8rkBGwt6BvaV3HkQ2cxdg
Backup YouTube Channel:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCU7Rf_HiHSpUFBDgZcM-XZg
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/BlueknightV2.0Channel/
Sonic Stadium:
https://board.sonicstadium.org/profile/43022-blueknight-v20/
Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/Blueknightv2
Become a patron for as little as $1 per month can help this site and channel become a next level source for video gaming news
Twitter:
Blueknight V2.0 
Leave a Reply