Sorry for the delay everyone, but I am back to continue my series of Pixar reviews in time for Onward in March. So last time we did this, we took a look at the studio’s first film, Toy Story, which is of course a classic fondly remembered, and watched by many today. So now we are going to be looking at their sophomore feature, that hasn’t quite gotten that much love or attention throughout the years. I am of course talking about A Bug’s Life which don’t get me wrong got positive critical notices at the time and was a financial success, its just that well you don’t hear too many people talk about it. Well why is that, why don’t people appreciate this film as much as the other that came out around the same time? Well then lets find out below shall we!
We take a look at a world like ours, just in whole new perspective. The story begins in Ant Island where an Ant Colony is forced to gather food for a group of Grasshoppers. all of them do their job the way their supposed to except for one, Flik. Flik is an inventor that creates a bunch of inventions that in short, don’t always work and as a result he is always treated as the outcast of the colony with, the Queen’s youngest daughter, Dot, being the only one that truly supports him. He does end up screwing up big time, however when he accidentally knocks the food into a stream with his grain harvester, the day the Grasshopper’s are coming to get that food! Seeing this disaster, the leader of the group, Hopper, demands that twice as much food be given to them as compensation. In a panic the ants led by future Queen, Princess Atta, try to figure out what to do, when Flick comes up with the idea of going to Bug City, and find bigger, stronger bugs to help fight the grasshoppers. Atta finds this plan insane, but is convinced by the rest of the council to go through with it since with Flik gone, there will be no one to cause trouble for the colony, and so with that Flik heads off on his mission. When Flick heads to the city he finds what looks to be a group of tough bugs in a bar, but in reality they are an abandoned, washed up Circus troupe that just got fired. Flick however, does not know this, and hires them to come to Ant Island, while they think he is a travel agent in need of their circus skills. All of the ants are thrilled to finally have “warrior bugs” to protect them, but then of course both flik, and the circus bugs both find out whats really going on. The bugs attempt to leave, but after saving Dot from a bird they gain the respect of the colony, and decide to aid them in their cause. So can Flik, the circus bugs and the rest of colony come up with a plan to stop Hopper before he returns to Ant Island, and put an end to his tyranny once and for all?
So why is it that this film is not as fondly remembered as the rest of Pixar’s output. Well, I think that that mainly has to do with the fact that the story in retrospect is pretty simple. I mean its essentially Seven Samurai with bugs, and its themes, and story are admittedly not nearly as complex as many of the studio’s later work, or even their first film for that matter. In fact I am sure that if this film were released today it would probably get a reception on par with the Good Dinosaur, Brave, and Monsters University (although it has arguably been treated as such in recent years). So that means this would just end up being a forgettable, and mediocre Pixar flick right? Well I’d say far from it actually. Sure this story has been done numerous times before, and after no doubt about that, but it is a story I really don’t mind hearing if done right. There’s just something about oppressed citizens standing up to the tyrannic oppressors with the help of a team of kind hearted individuals thats just very satisfying, but it only works if done right, and this film did do it right. It is very well written, actually changing up this whole formula with some interesting changes to this story like the warriors not being actual, well warriors, (I love the part where they find out what they’re really in for) and the main character not being one of the warriors. The script presents many, good, and important messages like standing up to oppression, and to not let anyone keep you from pursuing your dream, and embrace all of your qualities that make you, well you, and there is also a lot of good comedy with some funny long running jokes, and amusing visual gags concerning the different types of bugs. My only problem with the story here is probably when the Circus bugs are found out to be frauds, and Flik is revealed as a liar, and the ants stop working on their plan to defeat Hopper, but if I’m being honest its something I’m more mixed on than anything else. On the one hand it does create conflict and it does make sense that the ants would be mad about being lied to, but on the other hand it is kind of stupid to just abandon the plan altogether when it could still work, and the Circus Bugs had all the best intentions of helping them out. I understand its inclusion, I just felt it could have been done in a better way. Another thing that makes this film stand out form others of its ilk is the world in which this film takes place. Pixar applies the same world-building technique that succeeded greatly in Toy Story, and that is not shoving down the rules of how everything works in this world, and just letting audiences see for themselves. I really love the creativity on display here like the way the ant colony works, to the different bugs would act in a city setting (that’s where some of the best visual gags come in), and it shows that one of Pixar’s biggest strengths is crafting a memorable world that audiences would want to learn more about.
Pixar has always been a company willing to experiment with their animation, and that is very apparent here with this feature. They did a phenomenal job capturing the size of this shrunken down world, and playing with the scale of the feature with the numbers of detail here like how these ants would look at normal things like water as an obstacle, a blade of grass as a tree, or some boxes, and buckets as a city, really showing all of the creative, and neat things that could be done with animation. The character designs are stylized bug designs and they too are nice to look at with some clever little details here and there on some of them, and same goes for the movements where it is really fun to see how all of these different types of bugs would move around, and interact with their surroundings. This is probably one of the most visually inventive movies from the studio, which is really saying something, and I still think that visually it still holds up pretty darn well even if the age does show in certain aspects like the rendering, but even then its not that distracting. I also really appreciate the stakes here, an the sense of danger in the surprisingly intense third act, that also shows off some of those creative visuals with a rain storm being viewed as a natural disaster to these bugs. One thing I forgot to mention in my review of Toy Story is Randy Newman’s score, and how fun, and adventurous it was, well that also applies here. This is probably one of the more underrated Pixar scores (though not nearly as underappreciated as Cars 2’s), and its a shame considering that it fits the movies adventurous tone perfectly. It’s very epic, inspirational, and just flat out catchy to listen too, hopefully more people start to notice it more.
Another thing this type of story needs is a good cast of characters, and thank goodness this movies does indeed deliver on that aspect. Lets start with our main character, Flik, voiced by Dave Foley who is a likable, and relatable protagonist who enforces the themes of the film nicely. While he may not be the most original type of character out there, but he still is a solid character who is willing to help the rest of the Colony out in any way he can, and he never gives up no matter how hard a situation might seem, and Foley does give a fun performance. Then there’s Princess Atta played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus as his love interest, and she is actually one of most developed characters here as a future Queen who has all of these high expectations put upon her, and who is a little more than unsure about what to do in this position, but she later learns to be more confident in herself, and her decisions in order to become a good leader for the colony, and I found her to be very relatable. Hayden Panetierre is adorable as Atta’s sister, and futture princess, dot, as she has some cliched but sweet interactions with Flik, while Phyllis Diller has some fun as the kind, and relaxed Queen who is not afraid to crack a good joke every once in awhile. As for the Circus Troupe themselves, they are all a lot of fun to watch with each and everyone of them having a fun personality, and each standing out from each other like Denis Leary as hot tempered “ladybug”, Francis (who is responsible for some of the funniest moments), David Hyde Pierce as the respectful if a little sarcastic stick bug, Slim, Joe Ranft as the obese, lovable, German caterpillar, Heimlich, Bonnie Hunt as the mother-like black widow Spider, Rosie, Brad Garret as the childlike Rhinoceros Beetle, Dim, Johnathan Harris, and Madeline Kahn as a the magic act couple, Manny, and Gypsy, and Michael McShane as the twin Hungarian pill bugs, Tuck and Roll. They all stand out in some way whether it be their designs, personality, or funny jokes. Oh and of course there’s John Ratzenberger making his obligatory Pixar appearance as the fame seeking Circus owner, P.T. Flea, who also has some really funny moments throughout the picture. Now we come to Hopper, who is one of my favorite Pixar villains, and that is in no small part thanks to Kevin Spacey’s performance. He does a great job as a menacing, and oftentimes darkly humorous baddie who will do anything to keep those ants in line, and he almost feels like a character out of an R-rated picture, and its almost a miracle his comically annoying brother, Molt, played by Richard Kind didn’t get killed by this guy. Oh, and he has a pretty darn satisfying (if a little dark) comeuppance that is one of Pixar’s best. In order for this story to succeed the good guys need to be people you want to root for, and the bad guys need to be people you want to see taken down, and this particular take has just that.
A Bug’s Life may not be the best, or most original Pixar flick there is, but it still turned out to be a really darn fun ride. It is a great example of executing a familiar story, and spicing things up a bit with a very well written story, while also holding up very well visually with some very creative animation, and a cast of memorable, and likable characters. It’s a real shame this film ain’t as popular as some of the other studio’s work because like some other Pixar films I feel it deserves better. I mean just because it doesn’t have a complex theme or a huge emotional gut punch doesn’t mean it can’t still work very well, and sometimes a nice simple film is just what we need (done well of course). So know that we’re finished looking at Pixar’s sophomore feature, be ready for next time in this Pixar review series as we will return to the toy chest with Woody, and the gang in the first sequel the studio would make.
Rating: A-
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