Seven Samurai, A Bug’s Life basically the same movie, says Decider

Aux Features Film

In a 2004 interview with this website, director John Landis discussed the theory that his film, The Blues Brothers, shares some plot points with The Sound Of Music. “I think you could do that with any movie,” he said. “I saw Galaxy Quest and A Bug’s Life, and both of those films are completely, plot-point-by-plot-point, a movie I made called ¡Three Amigos!” Landis and his Amigos, however, may have to take their place in line behind the late Akira Kurosawa. In honor of the 60th anniversary of The Seven Samurai, Decider has assembled a compelling slide show that compares the classic Japanese film to Pixar’s A Bug’s Life and finds some remarkable similarities. “We didn’t just find exact themes, which is expected,” declares Olivia Armstrong’s accompanying article, “but exact scenes.” Perhaps the most interesting example is a comparison of contemplative moments from each film. The first features Toshiro Mifune:

The second features Flick the ant:

While the Bug’s Life/Seven Samurai comparison has been made before, Decider’s neat, point-by-point checklist may prove useful to anyone planning a double feature or, perhaps, writing a paper for a film studies class.

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