Minuscule - La valle delle formiche perdute

So here I am, watching the original "Minuscule" one week after I enjoyed its sequel with my daughter on the local movie theater, she liked the poster and if it wasn't for her enthusiastic endorsement, I might never have heard about any of "Minuscule 1" or "2", especially since the first one didn't even catch the attention of prestigious festivals, too busy rewarding "Frozen" to care about a simple, sweet and endearing movie about little insect that flies us back to the essence of animation and comedy.

And just as I expected it, the order of viewing didn't really matter. "Minuscule" proved to be an enchanting entertainment for the little ones, amused by these little buzzing sounds and thrilled by the action sequences and the adults who will appreciate the beautiful scenery, the gags and a few nods to their childhood. I trusted directors Helene Giraud and Thomas Szabo to beget something as hypnotic and thrilling as their sequel and I wasn't disappointed.

I knew the film wouldn't take the insects too far from home, that there would be no paradise island this time but now, but the series could expand to four or five installments, I don't think I'll get tired of it. You can take these ladybugs to the city, to New York City, to a desert, as long as they don't confront an army of cockroaches, I'll handle it. But there's more in the film than geographical escapism, its greatest merit is to dwell in many universes at the same time. Starting with the big picture: a realistic looking world established with a picnic with a real-looking couple, interestingly misleading us.

The picnic is interrupted when the woman in her latest stages of pregnancy feels the first signs of labor. Her husband takes her to the car, so they all leave the food at the mercy of little bugs and insects from the neighboring forest. And then we get to the insect's perspective and instead looking more or less real, what we get is perhaps the cutest creatures ever without the Disney eyelashes or the cute voices. They're all identified through wordless sounds: ladybugs buzz, ants emit sort of electronic hums, flies have a funny human-like giggle but there's little to no talk whatsoever.

And this is how you distance yourself from mastodons such as Pixar and Disney, there's no need for making any intelligible sound, you take the viewers back to the roots of animation and comedy by making a simple and straightforward story and leave everything up to slapstick, action and heart. It's just as simple as that and yet the level of fun is subtly sophisticated because the film doesn't try to take its 'no sound' device as a trademark of realism but as a creative canvas in order to fill up the scenes with the most inventive visual gags, appealing to both kids and adults.

And the structure of "Minuscule" is simple too, the film is divided in two acts: a thrilling chase sequences between black ants and red ants, the former group carrying a box of sugar cubes to their hive and the latter pursuing them inside a soda can after they refused one cube as a peace offering. The chase, as thrilling as "Apocalypto", gets trickier when their means of transportation are floating over rapids or when a hungry fish gets in the picture and a simple sugar box becomes a boat, a U-boat and war booty.

The second part involves a hilarious and heart-pounding war battle with the same box of cubes at stakes, and the mastery of CGI has nothing to envy from the epic effects "Mulan", I loved the epic of the red ants trying to break the black ants fortress, the way they use everyday objects as weapons, including insecticide bombs and toothpicks, or use forks as catapults even at the risk of falling down while uttering Wilhelm scream in their falls. I won't spoil the whole film but this is a fine example of linear and simple storytelling where the language is as universal as music.

Indeed, "Minuscule" has the outdated charm of a Silly Symphony cartoon, the tenderness of a Miyazaki especially with the cameo of a little spider creature who bears a strange resemblance with his soot sprites, the breathtaking visuals of a documentary and even the naughtiness of some more adult-oriented cartoons and one or two fart jokes that happen to work.

I saw the sequel in the theater and this one, at home, with my daughter and my father was here but she slept so we watched it alone and this time the roles were reversed, I was the little one watching it with his parent, but like the previous film, we both liked it. And I guess the best compliment you can give it is that it feels like it could have been made at any time for any audience. "Frozen" is good but it's a product of its time, "The Wind Rises" is masterpiece but that Miyazaki could only make after reaching his artistic peak. "Minuscule" is timeless.

........ for anyone anywhere on earth!

Part of the beauty of this film is the fact that not one word is spoken! It's insect buzzing and beeping that tells the messages. So anyone can understand this story.

The story includes two ant colonies - one black ants the other red ants and in the mix is one lonely disabled ladybug! The black ants have something the red ants want. The blacks ants friend the disabled ladybug! The red ants prepare to attack the black ants - the story takes you to the finish!

A remarkable treat for the eyes and ears! You cannot tell where real photography ends and the computer graphics starts - it's that well merged!!

Bravo!!!

its a shame people won't watch this because they think its foreign. there is no dialogue just a great score and sound effects, the insects do speak in there language which anyone with half a brain can work out! the cross animation with real world looks stunning! this will slowly become an all time great when the masses slowly catch on. great fun for children and adults alike,having said that young children may find bits a bit too sad! its a clever story of kindness,bullying,friendship,and war! all i can say is give it a chance and you will be very glad you did! its not cheaply done and could be compared to the outstanding visuals of a pixar movie! enjoy!!!!

Totally loved this movie, didn't know what to expect but was thrilled, charmed and amazed throughout. Cinematography is beautiful and the attention to detail astonishing, a lot of hard work has gone into this production and it really shows. Loved the personality's of each insect and although you need to suspend complete disbelief at what they achieve during the course of the movie it doesn't detract from a visual treat that is accomplished with zero dialogue from beginning to end, yes, no words from beginning to end and still a brilliant movie. Simply put, the best real film footage with CGI animation that I've ever seen - Kudos to the makers of this highly original film.

For a movie that blends CGI with real world shots, this is a very well done venture. The landscape is very beautiful, the music is delightful and there is a serene quality to the movie that would sooth your senses in the long run. As another reviewer mentioned, there was no real point to putting up racing car sounds to flying bugs but this is brief. There is no dialogue at all so its just sit back and follow the way these bugs communicate though whistles and chirps. Its a nice tale of friendship and I have to commend the director for this innovative venture. The final war scene between the red and the black ants is hilarious so I would highly recommend watching till the end.