A not so perfect interpretation of the old grasshopper and ant tale

Rating: 5/10 (4 September 2005)

Pixar's computer animation is of course top of the line here and in every movie they made to this date. However, the story this time is a little too bland this time to really involve an adult viewer, whereas kids below the age of 10 will probably eat it up. Flik, as voiced by Dave Foley, is just too darn nice and to make him an outcast because he is the most accident-prone ant in the colony will probably strike a chord with a lot of us but it doesn't really make the character funny. All of Pixar's character's from Woody to Mr. Incredible have many quirks but both Flik and the ant princess Atta (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) are too "normal".
Things pick up a little after Flik goes on his journey outside the colony where he meets the circus bugs but the circus setting in a bugs world has been done so many times that you almost wish that they had chosen a different setting (the factory like in Monster's Inc. could have worked). The misfit bugs are of course comedic distractions from the very real threat that hangs over the Ant colony, that of the abusive grasshoppers who intend to do terrible deeds if they are not given their ill-gotten food. By the way, the leader, Hopper, is the most terrifying creature in a Disney film yet and his ultimate fate (minor spoiler) will probably frighten some kids. The voice of Kevin Spacey was a real surprise because he expresses more emotion here than he usually does in his live-action roles. The less said about Richard Kind the better.
When you compare this to the other Ant movie that year, I will say that this is superior in the animation department but as many Disney ventures it is too darn cute this time. Check out the baby bug who believes in Flik like nobody else does and of the circus bugs only the ladybug, voiced by Denis Leary and the Stick by David Pierce are truly original characters.
So a good time if you have kids but to teens and singles there are not much to offer, except seeing spectacular animation.