A Bug's (Underrated) Life

     This upcoming Friday, something incredible is happening: The Incredibles 2 is coming to theaters! Pixar has a way of spacing out its sequels a decade apart from one another. As of today, it has been 4,964 days since The Incredibles was released (or approx. 13 and a half years), so waiting a few more days isn't asking too much. If one can't tell from these first few sentences, I'm pretty excited about The Incredibles 2 and cautiously optimistic that it will be good. I grew up on Pixar movies - a lot of times my family would go see new releases on opening weekend - we even saw Monsters, Inc. and The Incredibles on opening day! Pixar has a way of churning out classic films adored by children and adults alike, but there's one Pixar film that just doesn't get its due, one that gets lost in the discussion of great Pixar films: A Bug's Life. 

     Because everyone loves rankings, there are people that have ranked the Pixar films. If you were to go through them, odds are Cars 2 will be at or near the bottom, and the top would be crowded with the likes of Toy Story (any of the 3), Up, Monsters, Inc., The Incredibles, Finding Nemo, Inside Out, and/or WALL-E. Considering Pixar has released 19 films up to this point, it seems silly to list out nearly half of them, but with Pixar, there's quite the logjam at the top. When scrolling through those lists though, A Bug's Life is often relegated to the middle of the pack, never considered a classic the way Monsters, Inc. or Up are, but also not considered a disaster the way Cars 2 is. On the movie review aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes, A Bug's Life is a certified fresh at 92% - a pretty good rating by all accounts. However, when ranked with the ratings of all 19 Pixar films, that puts it at 13th(!), a testament to the quality of Pixar films. 

     *Side note: Although I enjoy Pixar films, I admittedly have not seen some of the newer films such as The Good Dinosaur, Cars 3, and (gulps) Coco - but I have heard that the latter of the 3 is pretty good! 

     Looking at those Pixar rankings, one can conclude that's part of why it gets lost in the discussion - it's ratings and reviews are ever so slightly less than other Pixar films, albeit by a few percentage points. And I will concede that at first glance, a film about bugs and ants doesn't exactly sound appealing (you can make a case that hurt Ratatouille as well  - a film about a rat that cooks). To me, there are also other reasons why A Bug's Life has gotten lost in the discussion. One, of the first 7 Pixar films (from Toy Story to Cars), A Bug's Life is the only standalone film. The other 6 have all received (or been) a sequel or prequel. Having a film that adds to the original helps keep that franchise in the spotlight - especially when those releases have been in the past few years or are coming up soon. Considering that multiple members of the Bug's Life cast have sadly passed away as well, producing another film becomes that much tougher. And compared to some of the other films regarded as classics, there isn't really any tear jerking scene or moment like in Up or Monsters, Inc.

     Around the same time A Bug's Life came out, a similar well-received film came out as well: Antz. Both films feature a lowly ant that wants to gain the affection of the princess while standing up to injustice in the process. At the time, there was a bit of a feud and dispute between Pixar and Dreamworks, including accusations that Antz was a ripoff. 

     Whatever the varying reasons are, A Bug's Life just never gets its due - and that's too bad! It has a great protagonist in Flik. He's one of those characters people can relate to because he's imperfect and has his flaws. For me, the fact that he's a bit quirky with his head in the clouds also helps me identify with him. And come on, the Circus Bugs are awesome! Tuck & Roll, Slim, Francis, Dim, Rosie, Manny, Gypsy - that's a good group. And of course, Heimlich's the true star of the group. Similar to Flik, they are all goofballs and screw ups that got fired by P.T. Flea. Yet, it was these rejects and screw-ups that ended up making the difference in that ant colony, kind of like how God uses broken and ordinary people to do extraordinary things.Overall, the film goes to show you that anyone can make a difference, that it all starts with just one ant. 

     Although these are secondary to the actual film, there are 2 things that A Bug's Life also does really well: outtakes and the short for the film. There was a time when Pixar would provide outtakes at the end of the credits - and these ones were by far the best! And "Geri's Game," the short before the film, is right up there with "For the Birds" for best Pixar short. But I digress... 

     In the late 1990s, DVDs were a new phenomenon. Growing up, the two earliest movies I recall my family having on DVD were Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and...A Bug's Life. Before we even had a DVD player, I can remember watching those movies on big, bulky computers. Maybe that nostalgia is why I have a fondness for A Bug's Life. Is it the best Pixar film of all time? No, that title goes to The Incredibles. That said, it is a great film, it's better than Antz, and one worth watching -- and not forgetting. But in the meantime...enjoy The Incredibles 2!