Antz

Antz
Official logo
Directed by
Screenplay by
Produced by
Starring
Edited byStan Webb
Music by
Production
companies
Distributed byDreamWorks Pictures (through DreamWorks Distribution)
Release dates
  • September 19, 1998 (1998-09-19) (TIFF)
  • October 2, 1998 (1998-10-02) (United States)
Running time
83 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$42–105 million
Box office$171.8 million

Antz is a 1998 American animated comedy film directed by Eric Darnell and Tim Johnson. It was written by Todd Alcott, Chris Weitz, and Paul Weitz, with additional sequences directed by Lawrence Guterman. The film was produced by DreamWorks Animation and PDI. Its voice cast includes Woody Allen, Sharon Stone, Jennifer Lopez, Sylvester Stallone, Christopher Walken, Dan Aykroyd, Anne Bancroft, Danny Glover, and Gene Hackman. Some of the characters were designed to look like the actors who voiced them.

The film follows Z, an anxious worker ant who falls in love with Princess Bala. When General Mandible tries to take control of the ant colony, Z must find the courage to stand up to him and save the colony.

Development of the film began in 1988, when Walt Disney Feature Animation proposed a project called Army Ants. The proposed film was about a pacifist worker ant who taught independent thinking to a colony with a military culture. Years later, Jeffrey Katzenberg left Disney after a disagreement with its chief executive, Michael Eisner, over the company's leadership. Following his departure, Katzenberg helped establish DreamWorks with Steven Spielberg and David Geffen. The company planned to compete with Disney, including through its animation division.

Production of Antz began in May 1996. DreamWorks worked with Pacific Data Images (PDI) to produce computer-animated films that could compete with those made by Pixar. During production, a public disagreement developed between Katzenberg and Pixar's Steve Jobs and John Lasseter. The disagreement was partly related to the development of Antz and Pixar's similarly themed film A Bug's Life, which was released about a month later. Tensions also grew over the release schedule of DreamWorks' The Prince of Egypt, as Disney did not change its plans to avoid competing with the new film. The music for Antz was composed by Harry Gregson-Williams and John Powell.

Antz premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 19, 1998. It was released in theaters in the United States on October 2, 1998, by DreamWorks Pictures. The film earned about $171.8 million at the box office, against a reported budget of $42 million to $105 million. It received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised its voice acting, animation, humor, and appeal to adult audiences. However, the film is often discussed in comparison with A Bug's Life, which was released shortly afterward.

Plot

Z is a nervous 16-year-old worker ant who lives in an anthill in Central Park. He feels unimportant because of his low position in the colony. Meanwhile, Princess Bala is unhappy with her royal life and wants more freedom. One night, the two meet at a bar for worker ants, where Z hears about a legendary insect paradise called Insectopia from a retired scout. Z and Bala dance together, and Z falls in love with her.

Bala is engaged to General Mandible, the leader of the colony's army. Mandible announces a war against a nearby colony of termites. However, he secretly plans to send only soldier ants loyal to the Queen into battle. He intends to use the deaths of these soldiers to carry out a coup d'état and take control of the colony.

Wanting to see Bala again, Z convinces his best friend Weaver, a soldier ant, to switch places with him during a royal inspection of the army. Weaver joins the workers and begins a relationship with Z's coworker, Azteca. Meanwhile, Z joins the army and meets Staff Sergeant Barbatus. Z is sent into battle against the termites, who kill nearly all the ants in his unit. Before dying, Barbatus tells Z to think for himself rather than blindly follow orders.

Z returns to the anthill and is celebrated as a war hero. However, when he meets the Queen, Bala recognizes him as a worker ant, and Mandible orders his arrest. In a panic, Z pretends to take Bala hostage and escapes from the colony with her.

Outside the anthill, Z decides to search for Insectopia, and Bala reluctantly joins him. Back at the colony, Z's actions inspire some workers and soldiers to question their roles. This disrupts the construction of Mandible's Mega Tunnel, a project he claims will improve the colony. Mandible responds by describing Z as a selfish criminal and encouraging the ants to follow orders. He promises rewards to those who finish the tunnel. However, his second-in-command, a flying ant named Cutter, begins to doubt Mandible's claims that he is acting for the good of the colony.

During their journey, Z and Bala mistake a human picnic for Insectopia. They meet two upper-class wasps named Muffy and Chip, who explain their mistake. A human then kills Muffy with a fly swatter. Z and Bala become stuck to a piece of gum beneath the human's shoe. The human removes the gum with a coin and drops it into a trash can filled with rotting food. The ants discover that this place is Insectopia.

Meanwhile, Mandible learns from Weaver that Z is searching for Insectopia. He sends Cutter to find Z and bring Bala back. Cutter eventually finds the ants and forcibly takes Bala to the colony. After learning what happened, a drunk and grieving Chip helps Z return to the anthill.

Z rescues Bala, and they discover that Mandible's Mega Tunnel will flood when completed. They realize that Mandible plans to drown the Queen and the workers so that he can rebuild the colony with Bala as his queen. Bala goes to warn the Queen while Z tries to stop the workers from completing the tunnel. However, the tunnel begins to flood.

As the water rises, Z and Bala help the Queen and the workers work together to build a ladder to the surface. Above ground, Mandible gathers his soldiers and celebrates his plan to create a new colony. When the workers break through the surface, Cutter turns against Mandible and helps them. Mandible attacks Cutter, but Z intervenes. Z and Mandible fall into the flooded tunnel, where Mandible dies after hitting a root. Z nearly drowns but is rescued by Cutter and revived by Bala.

Z is praised for saving the colony. He and Bala become a couple, and the ants begin to move beyond the strict social rules that once controlled their lives. Z finally becomes comfortable with himself and his place in the colony.

Voice cast

  • Woody Allen as Z-4195 "Z", an anxious worker ant who wants to find meaning in his life.
  • Gene Hackman as General Mandible, the arrogant leader of the ant army and Bala's fiancé.
  • Sharon Stone as Princess Bala, the Queen's daughter, Mandible's fiancée, and Z's love interest.
  • Sylvester Stallone as Corporal Weaver, a brave soldier ant and Z's best friend who later becomes Azteca's boyfriend.
  • Christopher Walken as Colonel Cutter, a flying ant who serves as Mandible's adviser but eventually questions his plans.
  • Anne Bancroft as the Queen Ant, Bala's mother and the ruler of the colony.
  • Jennifer Lopez as Azteca, a worker ant and friend of Z who later becomes Weaver's girlfriend.
  • Danny Glover as Staff Sergeant Barbatus, a soldier ant who befriends Z during the battle against the termites.
  • Dan Aykroyd as Chip, a wasp with a British accent who becomes Z's friend.
  • Jane Curtin as Muffy, a wasp who is Chip's wife.
  • Grant Shaud as the Foreman, the leader of the worker ants.
  • John Mahoney as Grebs, a drunken scout ant who tells Z about Insectopia.
  • Paul Mazursky as Z's psychiatrist.

Additional voices

  • Jerry Sroka as the Bartender, who works at the bar visited by Z and Weaver.
  • Jim Cummings as:
    • Soldier ants
    • A worker ant
  • April Winchell as a ladybug who lives in Insectopia.

Loop group

References

  1. 1 2 "Antz". American Film Institute. Archived from the original on October 20, 2020. Retrieved December 26, 2016.
  2. ↑ "Antz". The Numbers. Archived from the original on October 19, 2020. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  3. ↑ "D'Works, PDI trumpet 'Tusker'". Variety. December 4, 1998. Archived from the original on January 8, 2018. Retrieved January 8, 2018.
  4. ↑ Cheney, Alexandra (July 29, 2014). "DreamWorks Animation Q2 Earnings Fall Short of Estimates, SEC Investigation Revealed". Variety. Archived from the original on June 23, 2018. Retrieved January 3, 2026.
  5. 1 2 "Antz (1998) – Box Office Mojo". www.boxofficemojo.com. Archived from the original on September 21, 2019. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
  6. ↑ "Antz". British Board of Film Classification. Archived from the original on September 23, 2015. Retrieved August 23, 2015. Approved Running time 83 m 7s
  7. ↑ Fabrikant, Geraldine (November 21, 1998). "'Prince of Egypt' Is No King at the Box-Office". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 27, 2015. Retrieved February 25, 2017.
  8. ↑ Natale, Richard (November 21, 1998). "After 'Rush Hour,' Fall's Box-Office Traffic Is Light". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 4, 2015. Retrieved February 25, 2017.
  9. ↑ "'Antz' & 'A Bug's Life'". August 23, 2013. Archived from the original on February 21, 2019. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
  10. ↑ "Antz". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on February 3, 2023. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
  11. ↑ "Antz DVD – Review – Just a big kid". ciao!. January 30, 2001. Archived from the original on July 14, 2015. Retrieved July 13, 2010.
  12. ↑

Other websites

  1. 1 2 In July 2014, the film's distribution rights were purchased by DreamWorks Animation from Paramount Pictures (owners of the pre-2005 DreamWorks Pictures catalog) and transferred to 20th Century Fox before reverting to Universal Pictures in 2018 following NBCUniversal's acquisition of DreamWorks Animation in 2016.