A documentary by Mike Slee. Rated general. Now playing at Omnimax Science World

The name says it all in the latest large-scale edutainment inside the giant compound eye on False Creek. For kids who could gawk all day at the goings-on inside a mayonnaise jar-with air holes poked into the lid, of course-this is their chance to see a praying mantis blown up to King Kong proportions. Parents, on the other hand, may find themselves reaching for the Raid.

That's not to say Bugs! is pedestrian; it simply serves up its six-legged critters in a straightforward manner. Dame Judi Dench's plummy narration and John Lunn's retro-jazzy score do add panache to this look under the rain forest's leaves. And director Mike Slee makes an attempt at a story line by following the life cycle of a praying mantis nicknamed Hierondola and a caterpillar called Papilio. Suffice it to say they're destined for a fateful meeting.

The two central characters provide a few stunning moments: watch Hierondola hatch with hundreds of littermates that slide down silvery threads from their pod, or Papilio curl himself into a cocoon that's perfectly camouflaged as a leaf.

But mostly the film is just an excuse to throw in whatever cool, and often unconnected, footage Slee's been able to capture (mostly on location in Borneo). Such money shots include two rhinoceros beetles locking their horror-movie horns, and a column of leaf-cutter ants marching across a log with red petals as their flags.

These are exactly the kinds of creepy-crawlies that little girls and little boys have been fascinated with since the invention of ant farms and butterfly nets. As for adults, they aren't likely to glean much new information here. But hey: how often do you get the chance to see a movie whose credits include an "insect wrangler"?