Brother
Bear
I still don't understand how Brother Bear
got an Oscar nomination for best Animated film, but there are plenty of worse
movies out there.
Joaquin Phoenix stars as Kenai - the youngest of three brothers who is
disappointed to be told by the tribe's leader/priestess that all of his actions
should be directed by love rather than courage or wisdom. Always anxious
to prove his manhood, Kenai chases a bear, but it's too much for him to handle,
and his brother Sitka (D.B. Sweeney) dies trying to save him and his other
brother, Denahi (Jason Raize).
Kenai, looking for revenge, decides he wants to kill the bear, but, during
the hunt, "the spirits" transform Kenai into a bear, so he can learn from
his mistakes and better understand the world around him (how touching). To
get turned back into a man, he must go to a sacred place, "where the lights
touch the earth." Along the way, he meets up with a little bear cub, Koda
(Jeremy Suarez), who might be able to help.
Can Koda lead Kenai to the place where the lights touch the earth? What happened
to Koda's mom?
Brother Bear was a better movie than
I thought it would be, but I have to wonder if kids will get it. Very little
kids won't be able to take the violent parts of the film where hunters are
attacking bears and bears fight back, but adults might be surprised at the
emotional impact the story has on them. While directors Robert Walker and
Aaron Blaise insert a pair of moose for comical effect, Rutt and Tuke,
(Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas doing their MacKenzie Brothers characters from
SCTV), Brother Bear is best when it focuses
on Koda and Kenai's magical journey through Alaska. As you can imagine, they
bond and form a brotherhood that is important to both.
While Brother Bear is too mystical for
my taste, as the spirits of the dead appear as eagles and such while trying
to help those they left behind, it's a passable movie. You'll probably see
the obvious plot twist coming from a mile away, but Brother Bear will keep
your interest and won't feel like a complete waste of time.
2 Waffles (Out Of 4)
DVD
Extras
Koda's Outtakes - A few years ago, Disney
had the brilliant idea of adding these faked, scripted mistakes to the end
of A Bug's Life, and it was hilarious.
It had never been done before with animation, even though everyone in America
had seen programs like Dick Clark's blooper specials. Now, it's old hat and
predictable. I hated these faked outtakes because they mainly rely on potty
humor and don't try anything original.
Brother Bear Games - Of the two included
on this DVD, which Disney has been doing more and more with every DVD release,
I liked the bone puzzle game. It's hard to move the cursor onto the proper
bones to help put the puzzle together, but, after solving the puzzle, you
get a little lesson about the animal (and some clips from Disney movies).
Sitka from Brother Bear offers encouragement
to the kids and it's a decent way to spend an afternoon.
As for the Find Your Totem game, it's
not a game! It's a quiz with boring question that kids won't get or understand.
One of the questions was, "what would you do if your fishing net got caught
in a tree?" Another questions was, "what are you most likely to do when paddling
a canoe with friends?" I know kids are supposed to use their imaginations
for stuff like this, but it seems to be asking too much. Of course, the worst
part of the "game" are questions where you get encouragement from the DVD
after making a choice that would be considered rude.
At one point, the player is asked what he or she would do if asked to the
home of a friend for dinner, but they knew they wouldn't like the food. The
DVD didn't have a problem with me saying that I would bring my own food,
which is out of line if you ask me.
American Indian Tales - Kids get to hear
traditional stories about bears, how they came to be and more. It's interesting.
Art Tour - The user is shown drawings
done for the movie, and you get to see how many changes were made to
Brother Bear while it was in production.
There's not much here for kids, but it's interesting for adults who have
an appreciation for this type of stuff. I especially liked learning what
inspired the artists and how they studied nature to develop the sets and
scenery in the movie.
Sounds Effect Feature - This is an
interesting feature for kids who are interested in moviemaking and don't
know how the sound effects are created. Hosted by Jeremy Suarez (the voice
of Koda), it covers the basic, but could have been more informative.
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