A Bug's Life (1998)

This was over ten years ago? Jeez, when did I get so old? Spending a quiet night in at an absent relative's vacation home in Ireland, we found this well-remembered gem among the VHS tapes. Pixar's second-ever film, A Bug's Life, focuses on an ant colony that's terrorized every year by a malevolent gang of grasshoppers led by Hopper (Kevin Spacey). The ants find an unlikely hero in Flik (Dave Foley), an enthusiastic ant whose inventions and new ideas alienate him from the rest of the colony. After he accidentally destroys the food offering they'd picked for the grasshoppers, Princess Ada (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) sends him on a mission to find "warrior bugs" so he'll be out of the way while they scramble to pick more food.

He finds a group of failed circus performers and mistakes them for his warrior saviors, bringing them back to the colony to fight Hopper, while they think they're being hired for entertainment purposes. When Flik realizes who they really are, he hides the fact from the colony leaders by forming a plan to defeat the grasshoppers with a large mechanical bird, which the ants and circus bugs construct together instead of harvesting any more grain. Hopper is set on keeping the ants in line, and may prove too formidable for them to beat!

It's easy to love an underdog story, especially as a kid. I also like the "imagination and determination triumph over violence and conformity" theme. A Bug's Life is funny and well-written, with a nice sense of adventure and a good message. It's a little too character-heavy, but keeps the focus on Flik so it never feels lost in its own cast. Storywise it's a bit too simple, but it's never slow or boring. Also I hope everyone noticed that Flik is voiced by Dave Foley, who is one of my favorite guys ever. Big plus.

Animation-wise, it looks good, but comparatively it's not as impressive as Pixar's other films. I think even the first Toy Story looks better somehow. The character design is the main problem, I think: it just doesn't look as detailed and solid as in most of their other movies. The set design and movement are wonderful though, especially the textures. I think the main issue is, after Wall-E and Ratatouille, my expectations are now incredibly high for Pixar's visual aptitude, even with something 10 years old. A Bug's Life is enjoyable family fare that raises the standards for the genre, which seems to be Pixar's main thing. And like the rest of their films, it doesn't really do anything with its lady characters. And is pretty racist against grasshoppers.

4/5