Roll-M: "A Bug's Life" |
A Bug’s Life (starring the voices of Dave Foley, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Hayden Panettiere, Phyllis Diller, Kevin Spacey; directed by John Lasseter and Andrew Stanton, rated G).
Better get in line now. A Bug’s Life is going to have "legs" – lots and lots of them, and we’re not talking insects here. Without a doubt, this picture is destined to be a classic of animation – just in time for the holiday season. This is a present that definitely says, "Open me first."
A Bug’s Life, from Walt Disney and Pixar (the partnership that produced the recent animation hit Toy Story) is everything a fantasy movie should be. Uncle Walt would have been proud to put his moniker on this delightful flick.
And "Flik" just happens to be the name of the leading ant, a misfit who tries to save his colony from a biker-gang of grasshoppers, led by the evil Hopper (as in grass-, not Dennis). Flik enlists the aid of a flea circus full of bizarre performing insects, who are shocked to learn that they’ve been signed to give the performance of their lives -- as warriors. Best of the bunch is David Hyde Pierce’s "Stick," a whiney walking stick. But all of the insects have well-defined personalities, assuring that this is not in any sense a "cartoon."
Comparisons with that other "bug" movie, Antz, are inevitable. But A Bug’s Life is head, shoulders and thorax above Antz. There is more humor and more fun without the moralizing overtones of Antz. At the screening I attended, half were children under the age of 8, and all of them sat transfixed. If you have kids, they’ll thank you for taking them; if you don’t have any children, see if you can borrow a couple for the afternoon just so you can see the joy on their faces. This is the kind of old-fashioned animated movie Disney Studios has been trying unsuccessfully to produce ever since Walt passed on to that great theme park in the sky.
And don’t be surprised if "Bugland" isn’t on the Disneyland drawing boards already – the movie has "theme park ride" written all over it. A major promotional blitz is sure to feature stuffed bug toys for the kiddies, bug happy meals (including "bug juice"?) and so on. Also, the extraordinary soundtrack from Randy Newman is sure to be a hit and will probably get multi nominations come Oscar time (as will the entire film).
At the preview that I attended, there was an opening "short subject" from Pixar called Geri’s Game, an entertaining six or so minutes of animation about an old man playing chess against himself. It won the 1997 Oscar for Best Animated Short Film, and since A Bug’s Life only runs 94 minutes, I’m guessing that this will be included with all showings.
For those of you who make a beeline for the lobby when "The End" comes up on the screen – don’t. There’s a hilarious bit during the closing credits – I won’t spoil it for you here – but you must stay through the end titles.
FIVE OWLS – A Holiday Treat!