A Bug's Life

A Bug's Life deserves better than comparison at every mention to that other computer-animated insect film (Antz) or to that other feature from Pixar (Toy Story). Films with this much wit, energy and imagination are too rare to diminish in that way. It's not a perfect film, getting off to a sluggish start as it introduces an ant colony where misfit member Flik (Dave Foley) tries to free his fellows from servitude to malicious grasshoppers. In fact, it doesn't really take off until Flik heads to the "big city" to find warriors for his cause, discovering instead a disgraced band of circus bugs. The botched circus sequence in which they are introduced recalls classic Warner Bros. toons at their most gleefully anarchic, and every colorful character--including David Hyde-Pierce as a prissy walking stick bug and Denis Leary as a male ladybug with a major attitude--delivers laughs. The animators take us along on a wonderful ride, filling every scene with enough throwaway gags to dazzle viewers of all ages. Director John Lasseter has an uncanny eye for setting up a scene, and a sense of comic timing most directors of live action should be willing to kill for (nowhere more clearly than in the justly-praised end credit "outtakes"). Sure, it would have been nice if the story had been as tightly constructed as Toy Story's, or if the lead character had had a personality as distinctive as Woody Allen's Z in Antz. Those are the kind of nit-picking details you have to come up with when you're dealing with a film that's as much pure fun as A Bug's Life. It deserves comparison, alright...to the best films of any kind 1998 had to offer. Highly recommended. (S. Renshaw)[DVD Review--July 15, 2003--Walt Disney, 2 discs, 95 min., G, $29.99--Almost identical to the double-disc "Collector's Edition" released at the end of 1999, the new A Bug's Life: Collector's Edition adds just one extra: the minute-plus segment "Fishy Facts," which is little more than a promo for Finding Nemo. One other difference: this is $20 less than the original's $49.95 price tag. Considering that the single disc edition is currently unavailable, libraries may want to replace or upgrade with this extras-packed edition that features both widescreen and full frame versions, a solid commentary by the filmmakers (directors John Lasseter and Andrew Stanton, and editor Lee Unkrich) that is--rather oddly--not listed on the box, a slew of featurettes (in the categories of pre-production, production, sound design, and release), Pixar's Oscar-winning short Geri's Game, and outtakes. Bottom line: A Bug's Life was the first DVD created directly from the digital source, and it shows both in image and sound quality. A wonderful film with a great extras package.][Blu-ray Review—May 26, 2009—Walt Disney, 95 min., G, $39.99—Making its first appearance on Blu-ray, 1998's A Bug's Life sports an amazing transfer with 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio. Blu-ray extras ported over from previous releases include audio commentary by filmmakers John Lasseter and Andrew Stanton and editor Lee Unkrich, and the behind-the-scenes/production featurettes “Storyboard to Film Comparison” (14 min.), “Sound Design” (13 min.), “Abandoned Sequences” (6 min.), “Research Documentary” (6 min.), “Early Tests” (6 min.), “Storyboard Editorial” (6 min.), “Voice Casting” (4 min.), the promotional “Behind the Scenes of A Bug's Life” (4 min.), a Pixar offices tour (4 min.), and a “Progression Demonstration” with segments on “Story Reel” (4 min.), “Layout” (3 min.), “Animation” (3 min.), and “Shades and Lighting” (3 min.). Also included are the award-winning short “Geri's Game” (5 min.), the Walt Disney Silly Symphony short “Grasshopper and the Ants” (8 min.), two outtake segments and a behind-the-outtakes featurette (8 min. total), two minutes of character interviews, a brief production and concept art gallery, posters, ad campaigns, and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are a “First Draft” featurette with never-before-seen segments (11 min.), a 21-minute filmmaker's roundtable, and the BD-Live function. Also included is a bonus digital copy of the film. Bottom line: an outstanding Blu-ray debut for a winning Pixar classic.]