Think about all the “socialist” movies that have come out over the last 25 years or so. If you are anything like me, your first thought is probably Parasite, a movie that is so brilliant that me writing another word about it would only do harm. Maybe you think of Sorry To Bother You, an absolutely ridiculous and delightful film that dives deep into the pitfalls of capitalism and greed, the benefits of unionization, and the extents to which rich people will go to exploit every single ounce of productivity out of their workers before discarding them. Perhaps your mind goes to Office Space, seemingly the most “mainstream” example of this type of movie. I mean, shoot, Jennifer Aniston was in it at the height of her Friends fame. I still can’t believe this movie got made for how explicitly the anti-capitalist message is. I don’t want to write much more about it because I would love to do an entire newsletter on it at some point. Even though it doesn’t fit the criteria, we also have earlier classics like Reds that I need to mention. All outstanding films, but I would be willing to bet it might take a minute before you land on A Bug’s Life.
The kid’s movie from 1996 featuring talking ants, directed by the same guy who directed the first two films in the Cars and Toy Story franchises, is actually secretly one of the most radical films of the last 25 years. We likely have two categories of people reading this right now. We have the people who have never seen A Bug’s Life who are considering closing this because of how ludicrous of a statement it sounds like on the surface. Then we have the people who have seen it that are nodding along vigorously in agreement.
I know it probably sounds crazy, but this really isn’t subtle in the slightest. I mean, sure, I probably didn’t pick up on it when I was like an eight-year-old, who somehow still had faith in capitalism for some reason, watching this for the first time, but it is painfully clear watching it now how explicit it is.
For those that haven’t seen it, or if you need a refresher course, I’ll do a quick recap. A Bug’s Life follows a colony of ants working to prepare a feast for the grasshoppers. Flik, our main character, ruins the feast they had prepared, and he sets out on a journey to get some help to atone for his error by the time the grasshoppers come back. He inadvertently finds some circus bugs that come back and help the colony for a bit before their greedy circus owner, P.T Flea, comes back to return them to the circus. With the revelation that they were circus bugs now out there, Flik is banished from the island but is eventually persuaded to return. The circus bugs also return. The colony gathers as much food as they can for the grasshoppers, but Hopper, their leader, ultimately decides that it isn’t enough and takes over the island. The ants ultimately rose up against the severely outnumbered grasshoppers and forced all but Hopper from the island. Hopper is outsmarted by Flik and fed to the nearby baby birds.
Other than the ending, which we’ll get to, it might not seem super anti-capitalist just in the plot summary, but it gets there in the details. After returning from Ant Island, the grasshoppers sit around and ask Hopper why they even have to return. After all, they have more than enough food already. It seems like a very fair question. Hopper responds with the following.
I mean, if this isn’t as overt as it gets, then I’m not sure what is. It is the same thing we are dealing with today. It came out last week when the supreme court declined to extend the eviction moratorium that it could potentially lead to a slippery slope of other good things happening.
The Supreme Court threatened that if the moratorium were extended, nothing would stop the CDC from mandating free delivery for the sick or vulnerable. Or order telecommunications company provide internet or manufacturers provide computers for those working remotely. All of these are objectively outstanding things that would undoubtedly make this a much better society. It would save lives if implemented today and make life much easier for people. But, they will all never be done, not because of profit (I mean a tiny bit) but because of power and keeping that power forever. If people don’t need to slave away for 40 hours a week for 50 years of their lives, they would have time to focus on other things, like how this system isn’t a great one for most people.
In totally unrelated news, s/o Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antionette.
If that somehow wasn’t overt enough to convince you, then perhaps the final showdown between Hopper and the colony will do it. Hopper turns to the colony and says, “Let that be a lesson to all you ants. Ideas are very dangerous things. You are mindless, soil-shoving losers, put on this Earth to serve us.” Flik responds that ants were not meant to serve grasshoppers, and it is actually grasshoppers who need ants.
If you read beyond the literal meaning of things, it is quite easy to translate that scene to the real world. The working class has no need for the ruling class of billionaires, whereas the world would fall apart for the ruling class if the working class took direct collective action and realized their worth. Flik mentions how severely the grasshoppers are outnumbered and that they know it. Just something to think about.
The film ends with Flik outsmarting Hopper and Hopper being eaten by birds. It’s truly tragic that this movie wasn’t released in 2021. Imagine a movie coming out today that ends by literally eating the rich. Simply iconic. It is time that A Bug’s Life finally gets its recognition as one of the most radical movies of the last 25 years.