Year after year, moviegoers across the world have expected at least one animated feature, generally from the desk of Walt Disney and company, but 1998 has been the first year in animated history where animation has become a prevalent medium of filmmaking. Every June, Disney issues a brand new film, and within the past few years the films have been tiresome enough to make an eight year-old fall asleep. Nothing was improved in 1997 when Disney produced Hercules, a bland portrayal of the ancient hero in a rather modern-day setting. But in 1997, something different happened: Fox Entertainment released Anastasia a direct mock-off of the recent Disney style. Although 1997 was a meek year for animated feature films, it did represent the coming of a new revolution for animation. After the runaway success of The Lion King, studios like DreamWorks SKG quickly jumped onto the bandwagon to make their mark in 1998 and 1999.

The Record-Breaking Releases
On June 6th, Disney released Mulan, their 36th animated feature. Based upon an old Chinese tale, Mulan is a girl who joins the army disguised as a man to save her country. Disney spared nothing in respect to tradition with furry side-kicks and politically-correct adult jargon. With an array of mixed reviews and equitable box-office standings, Mulan was quickly pushed aside and the `bug-bout' between DreamWorks and Disney/Pixar started to erupt.

DreamWorks' Antz was slated for release in March of 1999, months after the Thanksgiving release of A Bug's Life. However, the battle suddenly shifted course when Jeffrey Katzenberg, DreamWorks' film leader, surprised the world with his announcement that the release date of Antz had been moved up to October 2, 1998. This was a sly move on DreamWorks' part, but as I look back on it -- and after seeing the rival A Bug's Life -- it turned out to be a very clever maneuver. Hollywood was now ready to release four animated features (Antz, A Bug's Life, Rugrats, and The Prince of Egypt) in a matter of only three months, a remarkable venture in film history.

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Antz was first to hit the silver screen. This was the first time since Toy Story that we had seen a complete computer animated film. Set within an anthill in New York City's Central Park, Antz told the story of Z, a worker ant, who tries to fight the eternal conformity of his society. DreamWorks marketed their film as an adult feature that would be suitable for children as well, but even with the help of leading voice actor, Woody Allen, Antz lacked the magical spark that cartoons typically bring, and instead left a dark and claustrophobic impression. Antz may have come first and relished more star-studded actors, but the suspiciously similar A Bug's Life was far more alluring and emerged as a lush children's classic. The idea of writing a movie solely based on insects is an attractive offer, but Antz failed primarily due to character development. We never really felt connected; whereas, A Bug's Life ventured into the entire insect kingdom and provided the character depth that any good film should have. A Bug's Life's sophisticated storyline only added to the remarkable computer techniques that created some of the most magical scenes in animated history, e.g. the rain shower scene and the final war against the grasshoppers.

Meanwhile, Nickelodeon produced their first full-length animated film: The Rugrat's Movie. Based directly on the television program, the film introduces a new member of the Pickles family, and in turn, leads us into a number of childish adventures. As expected, the film did remarkably well.