Okay, the mammoth is cute. But that's about the best reason to see this less-than-compelling Shrek/Monsters, Inc. knockoff from Twentieth Century Fox. The Ice Age is coming (rather more precipitously than it did in real life), and everybody's migrating south, but when whiny, lazy sloth Sid (John Leguizamo) gets left behind by his friends (not hard to guess why), he tries to hook up with loner mammoth Manfred (Ray Romano). All attitude and no character, this pair wore out my welcome in a hurry -- Bugs and Daffy they're not. Then a human baby turns up, and Sid persuades Manny to help him find its parents. On the way they're joined by sabertooth tiger Diego (Denis Leary), who claims to know the way but is actually leading them into a trap so the kid can be breakfast for his boss.

Don't expect any plot twists -- the ambiance may be wise-ass, but the sensibility is strictly Disney Lite. The animators are great with eyes, and there's a an affecting cave-painting sequence where we learn why Manny is as cynical as Casablanca's Rick. But I can't figure what audience Ice Age is expecting to heat up -- my Harry Potter-fan seven-year-old nephew already seems too mature for it. At the end, our three heroes traipse off into the sunset, visions of Ice Age 2 doubtless dancing in their heads. Of course, we're still waiting for the three caballeros from The Road to El Dorado to come back. At the Apple Valley, Entertainment, Flagship, Holiday, Hoyts Providence 16, Showcase, and Tri-Boro cinemas.