An epic...of miniature proportions!

Rating: Null/10 (21 December 2007)

A Bug's Life is the story of Flik, an ant, and his colony of ants. The colony has to each year gather food for the grasshoppers, mainly Hopper and his gang. Flik seems to mess up everything unknowingly, in a way that is endearing. And somehow his "inventions" don't seem to work and the more he tries the more he fails. When Flik upsets the pile of food that the ants have been collecting for Hopper all summer, he realises that he's really done it this time. Hopper arrives, scares them to high heavens, and messes with their minds - he gives them "one last chance". The ants, terrified, start collecting food again, this time double the load. As well as double food for Hopper, they need to start collecting for themselves. But it's late summer and there isn't much left to pick, feeling guilty, and coming up with a huge plan, Flik offers to travel to city, round up some tough warrior bugs, return, and fight off Hopper and his crew. The Ant Queen, Princess Atta (for whom Flik has a massive crush) and the other ants all agree to this - but only because they want Flik out of their way! Flik is determined to make a difference and give something back to his colony, but can he do it? Can he redeem himself and save his colony from Hopper? And if he does, how?
I thought A Bug's Life addressed bullying, and is the only animated film from Pixar to have done so. Even many Disney films have not addressed bullying so openly and easily. A Bug's Life, though subtle, addresses an issue.
The animation is STUNNING. I am a great fan of animated movies, especially by Pixar, and I think this is one of their best. Finding Nemo, Toy Story, The Incredibles, Monsters Inc. to name a few, A Bug's Life still remains as a classic Pixar animation, despite being one of their oldest movies. I thought the animation of the ants was done well, but better than that, was the landscape, and background. Each leaf was perfect, each stem defined and textured.
What I like most about A Bug's Life is that it makes you feel as if you know the ants, as they live a similar life to you. They talk, they eat, they shop, they buy drinks and have pubs, this made the movie so enjoyable and I finished watching it with a new-found respect for the bug world!