A Bug's Life

Voices of: Dave Foley, Kevin Spacey, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Hayden Panettiere, Phyllis Diller, Richard Kind, David Hyde Pierce, Denis Leary, Bonnie Hunt, John Ratzenberger, Brad Garrett, Roddy McDowell
Directed by: John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton
Rating: G
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy
1998

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: An outcast ant (Dave Foley) seeks a group of warrior bugs to help fight off a gang of grasshoppers. Unfortunately, he enlists the help of a circus troupe instead.

Review:

Tim: I like the basic idea of A Bug's Life. The world of insects is a fascinating one, and one that lends itself perfectly to animation. I went into this film really looking forward to it and excited to see what Pixar would do. Unfortunately, this is very obviously an early Pixar effort, and not one of their best. While the film is decent and mostly enjoyable, it does not have the emotional depth of some of the later Pixar films. For this reason, I wouldn't consider this among the better films in the brand.

The main reason for this film's limitations involves the story. We have an outcast ant who also happens to be a crazy inventor (this whole thing reeked of cliches to me), who seeks a group of warriors but finds bugs in a flea circus. The basic story is pretty simply and it felt like it borrowed too heavily from other films (for example, while not a direct comparison, I couldn't help but feel this movie borrowed quite heavily from Seven Samurai). It simply did not feel like this movie embodied the typical originality we've come to love and expect from Pixar. It felt far too much like a carbon copy of many other films. A Bug's Life can never shake the feeling that this whole thing has been done before.

I felt like the characters were pretty forgettable as well. I know it's a bit harder because they are all ants and need to look alike, but there wasn't enough to really differentiate the different characters. When you think about the best Pixar movies, the characters are forever linked in your memory- Woody, Buzz, Lightning McQueen, Nemo and Marlin, etc. I can't remember the names of anyone from this film. The characters simply don't stand out. That is a major flaw of this film.

The story, despite its all-too-familiar feel, is still full of the typical Pixar entertainment and excitement. The story mostly holds our attention and we do get wrapped up in the world of bugs. It's fun to watch this world unfold on screen and be a part of it for a little while. While I did not love A Bug's Life and I would not consider it among the best Pixar films, it's still a decent, fun little film. While there are flashes of genius here, they never materialize long enough to make any kind of impact on the film.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Toy Story, Ants