A semi-wonderful life

Rating: 7/10 (11 April 2004)

'A Bug's Life' lacks the mordancy that made the humour of 'Toy Story' so appealing to adults; but there's still much to enjoy in this animated film. The cutesy heroes are pretty bland, but the evil grasshoppers are wonderfully brought to life, the asynchronous movement of their multiple limbs a joy to behold. The real thing that's lacking here, certainly compared to 'Wallace and Grommit' (but 'Toy Story' also), is a sense of pacing: as if the film-makers lack the courage to let you simply marvel at their vivid creations, the film is action-packed but fairly monotonous in mood; and again unlike 'Toy Story', the viewer's perception of the characters is not shifted during the course of the film. These may sound like very 'adult' considerations; but the best animations can appeal to the child in us all. 'A Bug's Life' is superficial even for a children's tale; but fun nonetheless.