The Ant Bully (DVD, 2006, Widescreen)

Lucas Nickle (voiced by Zach Tyler) is a young boy fed up with bullies and his smothering parents. Taking his aggression out on the bugs in his front yard, Lucas thinks nothing of carelessly kicking down the ant hills. Zoc (Nicholas Cage) is an ant wizard questing to find a potion to stop the human "destroyers" from killing his colony. When Zoc drops an elixir in Lucas's ear one night, the boy is shrunk down to ant size and forced to confront life from a whole new perspective. Handed over into the loving care of Hova (Julia Roberts), Lucas learns to live like an ant and tries to help save the colony before an evil exterminator (Paul Giamatti) comes to make his deadly appointment.
Here's something I haven't felt from a CG animated film so far this summer: pure delight. "Ant Bully" supplies this sensation over and over again, somehow lining up all the important elements to create one of the best examples of the genre I've seen in recent history.

Adapted from the book by John Nickel, "Ant Bully" is first and foremost a lesson for kids on the importance of teamwork and appreciating those willing to help you. Similar films (like this summer's "Cars") would drown trying to sell the moral, but "Bully," under the radiant direction of John Davis ("Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius"), is more concerned about the possibilities for bite-size adventure the story holds.

Davis keeps the picture moving briskly, trusting the audience to understand the characters and their troubles, forgoing the typical shove-down-the-throat storytelling policy of other animated features. Save for one scene where Zoc openly wonders why humans don't work with each other to solve problems, "Bully" is blessedly fat-free of draggy lectures and melodrama, electing to let the expressive animation convey most of the internal struggles.

As with most CG films, the voicework makes the whole production. Also appearing in the film are Lily Tomlin, Meryl Streep, Regina King, and the man himself, Bruce Campbell, as a macho, but easily spooked scout ant. The most surprising cast member has to be Nicholas Cage, who always seemed like the last actor around to do a film like this. Cage is a fireworks display here, reminiscent of the acting choices of his youth, when his exuberance and playfulness made for some thrilling performances. His lively spirit carries "Bully" well, even if he's knocked out of the plot midway through. It's good to see the old Cage come out to play again, especially in a film as generously entertaining and easy to swallow as this.


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Lucas is picked on by the neighborhood bully whose justification is that he is big while Lucas is small. Lucas takes out his frustration on the ants in his backyard on the same basis. When the wizard ant, Zock (Nicolas Cage), perfects a potion to defend the ant colony against "Peanut - The Destroyer" (as the ants call Lucas) he uses it to shrink Lucas down to ant size. The mother of the ant colony sentences Lucas to learn how to be an ant as a means of beginning understanding between ant and humans. It will be by learning about ants that Lucas earns his way back to human size. A series of adventures begin during which Lucas learns the value of teamwork, sacrifice and greater sensitivity to the perspective of others. Super animation especially in the "battle" scenes where Lucas brokers a partnership with a swarm of wasps (who look kind of like those pesky green flies). The movie has wonderful animation, some very funny scenes and a super appearance by Paul Giamatti as the Exterminator. There are also appearances by Julia Roberts as Hova, Lucas' guide and mother-figure in the ant world, and by Meryl Streep as the Mother Ant. Good for all ages. My 9-year old was entranced as my 5-year old.

Pros
+ Great voice acting & animation.
+ An epic journey as far as your imagination can stretch.
+ Fun for the whole family.
+ Great moral values.

Cons
- Some characters may be too complex for children to understand.

Comments
This is an awesome movie and a lot of fun to watch. It's a lot like 'Honey I Shrunk the Kids' with a twist. There are also a lot of cute short films that let you enjoy the characters a little bit longer.

Verdict
A fine addition for any family collection. 4.5/5

This movie is an absolute MUST BUY! Your munchkins will watch this over and over again. They may have other movies that they watch repeatedly, but this movie has an underlying lesson that will stick. Kind of a "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" lesson. Funny, exiting and action packed!!
Mom and Dad will enjoy and laugh at "Ant Bully" right along with the Kiddos.
If you are thinking of buying a new movie for your Children, this IS the one.

The Ant Bully

I highly enjoyed The Ant Bully. It's funny, fun, and full of adventure. I'm not a huge fan of these types of films but I like a select few and The Ant Bully is one of them.

A great movie for kids and adults alike.