Stephen Dubner

That feature film was Ratatouille. It's about a rat named Remy who lives in a farmhouse in the French countryside and dreams of becoming a chef.

But then Remy, his family, and his entire rat tribe are chased into exile, and he winds up in the sewers of Paris. As he explores the city above ground, Remy comes across the legendary Gusteau's restaurant. The late chef Auguste Gusteau was Remy's hero. His famous book is called Anyone Can Cook. But Remy sees that Gusteau's restaurant is now run by a corrupt, tyrannical chef named

But then Remy, his family, and his entire rat tribe are chased into exile, and he winds up in the sewers of Paris. As he explores the city above ground, Remy comes across the legendary Gusteau's restaurant. The late chef Auguste Gusteau was Remy's hero. His famous book is called Anyone Can Cook. But Remy sees that Gusteau's restaurant is now run by a corrupt, tyrannical chef named

But then Remy, his family, and his entire rat tribe are chased into exile, and he winds up in the sewers of Paris. As he explores the city above ground, Remy comes across the legendary Gusteau's restaurant. The late chef Auguste Gusteau was Remy's hero. His famous book is called Anyone Can Cook. But Remy sees that Gusteau's restaurant is now run by a corrupt, tyrannical chef named

And there's a new garbage boy in the kitchen named Linguini. Linguini does want to cook, but he doesn't have much talent. Remy has talent, but he's a rat. So the two of them become secret collaborators.

And there's a new garbage boy in the kitchen named Linguini. Linguini does want to cook, but he doesn't have much talent. Remy has talent, but he's a rat. So the two of them become secret collaborators.

And there's a new garbage boy in the kitchen named Linguini. Linguini does want to cook, but he doesn't have much talent. Remy has talent, but he's a rat. So the two of them become secret collaborators.

Remy hides on top of Linguini's head under his chef's toque and becomes his puppet master chef. Together, they make beautiful food, potato leek soup, the perfect French omelet, and a twist on sweetbreads a la Gusteau. It turns out that Linguini is the son of the great Gusteau, and the secret collaboration between Linguini and Remy turns out to be a big hit. as was the film itself.

Remy hides on top of Linguini's head under his chef's toque and becomes his puppet master chef. Together, they make beautiful food, potato leek soup, the perfect French omelet, and a twist on sweetbreads a la Gusteau. It turns out that Linguini is the son of the great Gusteau, and the secret collaboration between Linguini and Remy turns out to be a big hit. as was the film itself.

Remy hides on top of Linguini's head under his chef's toque and becomes his puppet master chef. Together, they make beautiful food, potato leek soup, the perfect French omelet, and a twist on sweetbreads a la Gusteau. It turns out that Linguini is the son of the great Gusteau, and the secret collaboration between Linguini and Remy turns out to be a big hit. as was the film itself.

Ratatouille, released in 2007, won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature, and it grossed over half a billion dollars. That made Ratatouille a big outlier in Hollywood. And Remy the Rat was an outlier, too. As we've been learning in this series on rats, it is a rare day when a rat is the hero of any story. Since the days of the bubonic plague, rats have been associated with death and disease,

Ratatouille, released in 2007, won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature, and it grossed over half a billion dollars. That made Ratatouille a big outlier in Hollywood. And Remy the Rat was an outlier, too. As we've been learning in this series on rats, it is a rare day when a rat is the hero of any story. Since the days of the bubonic plague, rats have been associated with death and disease,

Ratatouille, released in 2007, won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature, and it grossed over half a billion dollars. That made Ratatouille a big outlier in Hollywood. And Remy the Rat was an outlier, too. As we've been learning in this series on rats, it is a rare day when a rat is the hero of any story. Since the days of the bubonic plague, rats have been associated with death and disease,

To call someone a rat is a special kind of insult. It suggests they've behaved so badly as to be subhuman. But is it time to reassess the rat's reputation, perhaps even rehabilitate it? Today on Freakonomics Radio, we dissect Ratatouille with Jan Pinkova. In a way, Ratatouille is like ballet dancing with Nazis. We look at why rats have been so valuable to human science.

To call someone a rat is a special kind of insult. It suggests they've behaved so badly as to be subhuman. But is it time to reassess the rat's reputation, perhaps even rehabilitate it? Today on Freakonomics Radio, we dissect Ratatouille with Jan Pinkova. In a way, Ratatouille is like ballet dancing with Nazis. We look at why rats have been so valuable to human science.

To call someone a rat is a special kind of insult. It suggests they've behaved so badly as to be subhuman. But is it time to reassess the rat's reputation, perhaps even rehabilitate it? Today on Freakonomics Radio, we dissect Ratatouille with Jan Pinkova. In a way, Ratatouille is like ballet dancing with Nazis. We look at why rats have been so valuable to human science.

And we hear a love story.

And we hear a love story.

And we hear a love story.

Come along for this third and final episode in our series, Sympathy for the Rat.