Antz

Antz is a smart and fun CGI animated film that launched DreamWorks Animation. The film follows a neurotic ant who dreams of more than life as a worker, but when he ventures to the surface the world turns out to be quite different than he imagined. Featuring an all-star cast, the voice talents include Woody Allen, Sharon Stone, Gene Hackman, Sylvester Stallone, and Christopher Walken. There’s a bit of stunt casting going on, but overall of the actors are used especially well and help to heighten comedy. And the CGI animation is quite imaginative and colorful despite the rather rudimentary look. Wildly entertaining, Antz is a great film that’s full of laughs for all ages.

This was a good. My favorite line. "Who the hell is that!" Got to see it to know what I'm laughing about. LOL

Full Review: https://www.jake-s-entertainment-reviews.com/movies-and-televison/antz-1998

I don’t like this movie. I won’t act like Pixar’s A Bug’s Life is perfect. Still, it at least had colorful, memorable characters and a better-paced story, even if it was cliched. Antz had a lot going for itself as it wanted to tell a more grim, ambitious, and adult-animated story. I’m not against that, but if the characters and story are messy and not as well thought out as they should have been, then that is a sign that Dreamworks wanted to outdo Disney rather than try to tell a good story on its own. The opening with Z talking to a therapist is a solid start, and the animation is admittedly even more ambitious than A Bug’s Life. Unfortunately, I found the characters forgettable, and the story was trying too hard to be edgy. I’m happy for those who enjoy this movie, but this movie does not hold up for me looking back years later. It's not Dreamworks’s worst, but it's a poor start to their lineup. However, I am thankful that after this, they will try to make bigger and better films than what is shown here.

(Final Grade: C)

Story-wise the movie would deserve a better rating, but in my opinion the characters of both Z and Bala are so unlikeable and cringey, it ruins the movie for me. I wish they would've focused more on side characters like Weaver, Azteca and Cutter, or the workings of the ant colony itself, instead of throwing in some pseudo "bonding and falling in love" scenes that just felt forced—rapey almost—and out of place compared to the rest of the movie. Too bad.

So... that wasn't a fever dream then...

Antz or a Bug's Life? WATCH EM BOTH!