A Bug's Life (1998)
2003 Collector's Edition
Film:
DVD:

Directed by John Lasseter & Andrew Stanton
Written by Don McEnery, Bob Shaw & Andrew Stanton based on a story by John Lasseter, Joe Ranft & Andrew Stanton
Starring Dave Foley, Kevin Spacey, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Denis Leary, Phyllis Diller

Features:

• Audio commentary with Lasseter, Stanton and supervising film editor Lee Unkrich
  
• Early executive presentation starring "Fleabie"
  
• Behind-the-scenes coverage of the film with introductions and explanations by the filmmakers
  
• Original story treatment and pitch boards
  
• Character designs, concept art and color script
  
• Sequences abandoned for the final film
  
• Storyboard-to-final-film split-screen comparison
  
• Behind-the-scenes look at voice talent
  
• Early production tests
  
• Production progression demonstration with each of the stages of production represented
  
• Sound designer Gary Rydstrom on the sound effects in the film
  
• Trailers and posters
  
• Behind-the-scenes look at how the film was altered to accomodate whackos who like full-frame movies
  
• Both takes of outtakes along with a featurette regarding them
  
• Pixar's short, "Geri's Game"
  
• "Fishy Facts" trailer for Finding Nemo
  
• A Bug's Land Game
  

Released by: Buena Vista
Rating: G
Region: 1
Anamorphic: Yes.

My Advice: If you already own the last collector's edition, skip it. However, if you still need one, grab it.

Welcome to Ant Island. They've got a bit of a routine going on, one that forces them to break their little ant backs harvesting food not just for themselves, but also for a gang of evil grasshoppers, led by one Hopper (Spacey). Hopper and his crew have a nice little protection racket running. That is, until an absent-minded inventor ant by the name of Flik (Foley) botches the entire plan. Caught between a locust and a hard place, Flik hatches a desperate scheme--go find some other bugs to hire and then bring them back to Ant Island to kick the carapaces off Hopper and crew. Looks good on paper (or maybe scrawled on a leaf in this case), but can Flik pull it off?

The gist of the matter is that this edition is pretty much the same as the last "collector's edition" that Pixar and Disney threw at you, with a couple of small exceptions. The good news is that considering that particular edition is out of print, if you were foolish and missed it the last time, then you can redeem yourself by getting it now.

Rather than repeat all of the accolades we gave that release, we'll simply concentrate on what's new. First, you get an amusing trailer for Finding Nemo, Pixar's next theatrical release. It's one I had not seen before this, but hey, I don't get out much. The other new addition is a DVD player game called "A Bug's Land." Readers familiar with my reviews on here know that I'm not a big fan of games you play on your DVD player. They make no sense to me. Even the youngest kid you can find who has the wherewithall to operate a remote enough to play one of these games also has the intellectual fortitude to devour some good full-fledged PC games, if not Xbox or some other console. So playing "match the watermelon bit" isn't really going to drive them wild. Granted, the game is better than most in that it reacts faster, so there's less waiting and boredom. So will it entertain your six-year-old for maybe one through? Maybe? Sure. Other than that, it's the same cool stuff you got last time around.

Like I said, if you have the last two-disc set, then you're golden. There's no need to grab this one. The game isn't going to be worth more than a single play and the Nemo trailer you can watch online. But if you missed out, don't do so again.