Antz

Sweet animated comedy. Story is not that original but is very well told and animated. Hilariously funny at times.

Voice cast is an all-star one: Woody Allen, Dan Aykroyd, Anne Bancroft, Danny Glover, Gene Hackman, Jennifer Lopez, Sylvester Stallone, Sharon Stone, Christopher Walken. Moreover, the cast delivers in spades - great casting.

Released 1 year after Disney/Pixar's 'A Bugs Life' and still during the early years of the computer generated genre, Dreamworks released their second all CGI cartoon 'ANTZ' and despite the glaring resemblances between the 2 movies; all it not as it appears.

ANTZ still stands alone as the more adult movie in the genre, far more complexity in the character's emotions and a far more sinister plot evolution separate this from rest. OK movies like 'Shrek', 'Finding Nemo' and 'Toy Story' have adult undertones beneath the humour, but ANTZ doesn't rely on such subtlety.

PLEASE NOTE THIS IS NOT A CRITICISM OF EITHER STYLE!

We follow the struggle of 'Z' (Woody Allen) as he tries to come to terms with his life as a worker, his neurosis, his love for Princess Bala and dream of something better. Allen is excellently supported by an all star cast, including Sharon Stone, Sylvester Stallone, Gene Hackman, Christopher Walken, etc, and we are treated to a visually impressive rendition of a heart warming story about life as an ANT.

This movie can still be enjoyed as a family film, but much of it will be lost on younger kids.

In Summary ANTZ is a fine film, but in truth it is difficult to compare with others in the genre, and for that; i salute it!

7/10

From what I have read, DreamWorks got the idea of an insect animation film from Disney, rushed to market before the Disney version was released, and that they think this will enable them to compete against Disney in the animated film market? I think some reevaluation is in order.

ANTZ is not bad, far from it. The animation is very well done (to this untrained, unschooled eye) and the voices well-acted (and maybe Woody wasn't so much acting as being Woody). The feel-good plot was well......very Disney. Certainly worth the price of a rental. And I mean this for adults. I can't comment of the movie being too dark and violent for small children, well maybe very small children.

Nothing earth-shaking or leading edge, but good ol' entertainment.

I watched this for the first time with my sister as part of our Dreamworks Movie Marathon. Though not even remotely comparable to Pixar's A Bug's Life in terms of quality, Antz is an enjoyable overall experience. The main character was a bit annoying, but at least he was different than I expected. His romantic counterpart was very intolerable, and this resulted in an extremely forced romance between two characters who had no reason to fall in love.

That all being said, the movie had teeth, and it was unafraid to kill off characters left and right. The main theme of non-conformity really beat you over the head throughout the film, and could have been a bit more subtle. This basic plot leads me to believe this film is directed at kids, but the innuendo and adult-jokes make me think otherwise. Not sure if it's a good kids movie since I'm not a kid anymore, but Antz is a pretty good film with some problems here and there.

I'll be reviewing every Dreamworks film after my sister and I watch it, so Antz is a good start.

Antz is rock-solid entertainment, and while it isn't as funny as Bug's Life, it has a great social message that Bug's Life lacks. I thoroughly recommend this movie, and the only criticism I have is that there are some scenes that young children might find frightening, like the fight between the ants and the big green bugs. The visuals are a delight, as well as the tightly-structured script.The story, while simple, is well-told, and is sensibly revolved around the life of Z, brilliantly voiced by Woody Allen. Sharon Stone was suitably feisty as Princess Bala, and Sylvester Stallone was a huge surprise as Weaver. Christopher Walken was also good, but it's the villain who steals the show, like Bug's Life. Gene Hackman's General was deliciously sinister, and quite complex, very similar to Kevin Spacey in Bug's Life(Hopper is SLIGHTLY better). All in all, a witty and charming film, that is recommended. 9/10. Bethany Cox