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Bug's Life, A
Buena Vista Pictures / Walt Disney Pictures

Bug's Life, A reviews
Critic Score
Metascore: 77 Metascore out of 100
User Score  
8.2 out of 10
based on 23 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
based on 14 votes
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MPAA RATING: G for General Audiences

Starring Dave Foley, Kevin Spacey, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Phyllis Diller, David Hyde Pierce, Denis Leary, Madeline Kahn, and Bonnie Hunt

The story of an ant named Flik who is searching for better ways to be a bug.


GENRE(S): Animation  |  Comedy  |  Family/Kids  
WRITTEN BY: Andrew Stanton (also story)
Don McEnery
Bob Shaw
John Lasseter (story) and Joe Ranft (story)
 
DIRECTED BY: John Lasseter
Andrew Stanton
 
RELEASE DATE: DVD: May 27, 2003 
Video: August 1, 2000 
Theatrical: November 25, 1998 
RUNNING TIME: 96 minutes, Color 
ORIGIN: USA 

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

100
Dallas Observer Michael Sragow
Lasseter and Stanton and the rest of the animators and gagsmiths use the computer with staggering imaginative freedom.
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100
Newsweek Jeff Giles
All-embracing--funny and silly and tender, full of fun scares and endless sight gags.
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100
Salon.com Janelle Brown
It's impossible not to be utterly blown away by Pixar's animation.
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100
San Francisco Chronicle Peter Stack
One of the great movies -- a triumph of storytelling and character development, and a whole new ballgame for computer animation. Pixar Animation Studios has raised the genre to an astonishing new level.
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100
Time Richard Corliss
At the end, the movie tops itself with comic outtakes, undoubtedly the funniest finale of any cartoon feature. “Antz” may have amused viewers with its sidewise wit, but as a comprehensive vision of computerized moviemaking, Pixar's dream works. And when A Bug's Life hits its stride, it's antastic.
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90
Film Threat Ron Wells
This is a family film. There's a great deal of wackiness.
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90
Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan
What A Bug's Life demonstrates is that when it comes to bugs, the most fun ones to hang out with hang exclusively with the gang at Pixar.
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90
The New York Times Elvis Mitchell
Makes jaunty, imaginative use of both extraordinary technology and bold storytelling possibilities within the insect world.
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90
The Onion (A.V. Club) Nathan Rabin
Smashing family entertainment: The whole thing is quick-witted, fast-paced, and loaded with clever sight gags and colorful, engaging supporting characters.
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90
Village Voice Amy Taubin
There are big crowd scenes, intimate close-ups, and lots of bug’s-eye point-of-view shots. Call me gullible: I believed every second of it.
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90
Chicago Reader Lisa Alspector
Full of adventure, spectacle, light romance, and the kind of suspense that doesn't require an unpredictable outcome to make your spine tingle.
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88
ReelViews James Berardinelli
A Bug's Life, like “Toy Story,” develops protagonists we can root for, and places them in the midst of a fast-moving, energetic adventure.
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88
Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert
The story, about an ant colony that frees itself from slavery to grasshoppers, is similar in some ways to the autumn's other big animated release, "Antz," but it's aimed at a broader audience and lacks the in-jokes.
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78
Austin Chronicle Russell Smith
From the pure entertainment standpoint, ABL's nonstop action helps it avoid the slack moments that marred “Antz”. The dialogue, kiddie-accessible though it is, is plenty intelligent for adult enjoyment.
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75
Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt
The story is amusing and the animation is first-rate, but there's less sparkling originality than in "Toy Story."
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75
Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman
So obsessed with wowing you, in every corner of every frame, that as a movie it doesn't quite breathe.
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75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Liam Lacey
In a movie about an ant colony, perhaps it's futile to complain about a superfluity of characters. Yet this need to cover every permutation of cuteness is one major drawback to the cast of A Bug's Life.
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70
Variety Todd McCarthy
Entertaining in a very showbizzy way.
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60
TV Guide Sandra Contreras
The saucy repartee will amuse adults, while the climactic showdowns -- yes, there are more than one -- are gripping entertainment for the whole family.
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50
The New Yorker David Denby
O.K. for children.
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50
Washington Post Stephen Hunter
Clever as it is, the film lacks charm. One problem: too many bugs. Second, bigger world for two purposes: to feed birds and to irk humans.
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50
Washington Post Michael O'Sullivan
It's an infusion of zip that's sorely needed, because the chief deficiency of A Bug's Life so far is its blandness….The film's other weakness is the low-octane vocal performances of its leading cast.
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40
LA Weekly Manohla Dargis
The most pleasure to be had from this high-tech bore is to compare the Disney world-view evidenced here (the triumph of collectivism) with that of DreamWorks’ own creepy-crawler animation, “Antz” (the triumph of individualism).
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What Our Users Said

Vote Now!The average user rating for this movie is 8.2 (out of 10) based on 14 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Jack B. gave it a10:
Excellent movie.

Sophie gave it a9:
I honestly don't get why this movie didn't get as good reviews as the other Pixars. In my opinion this is a fantastic movie. Maybe not as great as Toy Story, but definitely something worth watching again and again.

Nicholas D gave it a9:
Great.

Phillip T. gave it a2:
This film fales as a childrens strory and dissapoints adults as a sweet comedy. It comes together as a hardly descent picture with bad acting and an annoying plot.

Lord F. gave it a3:
a film nothing more than descent and somewhat annoying. forgettable and quite terrible at times

Kitty C. gave it a 10:
A highly imaginative and enjoyable movie which will entertain adults as well as children, with a charming cast of characters, a good plot and good gags.

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