Brother Bear (2003)

It is a performances centric movie

Admirable film.

There are better movies of two hours length. I loved the actress'performance.

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

Disney has done it before. And every time it is so sad, 'cause there are many good aspects of flops like The Black Cauldron aside from the unlikable main characters and episodic plotline and unfinished ending, in the underrated Hunchback of Notre Dame aside from the annoying forced-in comic relief gargoyles , and in The Fox and the Hound aside from the anti-climatic disappointment because of the fear of being too harsh by letting a character die in an otherwise strong scene. This is much the same problem with Disney's Brother Bear. It starts of with this beautifully traditionally animated trip into an exciting culture of some kind of Inuit tribes with the atmospheric "Great Spirits" playing. Our main character learns about the symbols of animals and nature and what they represent. Then he and his brother travels off to hunt and encounters a bear which ends up killing the brother and as a result of our main character killing the bear too, he is transformed into a bear. Aaaand from there it plunders into this done to death budy comedy and it just gets sickly sweet and colourful. I like the colours, but mixed up with a sub-par Phil Collins soundtrack which is either annoying or ruins dramatic scenes, it is just lazy. The ending is to its credic in the same vein as the begining. It comes back from this completely different movie to wrap up the lessons our main character has learned. It is a heart-warming ending which evened up the cringe from many of these done to death characters we have to encounter. It is pretty average, but the begining and ending stands out. Over all, I am glad I watched it. Your kids may certainly like it.

Brother Bear is a real superb fable with many a social theme coursing through it. Relations between different social groups and the value people and animals hold dear to one another are transcendent. This film knows this, and shows us so.I have to be honest, I didn't think much of "Brother Bear" when I first saw the ads for it on TV all those years ago. I dismissed it as another Disney film which probably catered to kids, probably had high production values, and probably had some kind of story about a Native American turning into a bear via Disney magic.It's all those things, but it is so much more. Often our social cliques dictate to use what we assume other people must be like, and when we see someone who looks different from ourselves, we wonder if they actually are different. Otherwise a lot of us assume that other people simply operate they way we do, and get along as we do. It creates rifts in society that can spill over into violent social outrage. "Brother Bear" takes a page from the spiritual, and uses that plot device to propel the story forward to give one of the humans a taste of what it's like to walk int he footsteps of "the opposition".This Disney production, like a few other Disney productions, does not spare the talent. From the screenplay, which is coursing with great dialogue, story moments, focusing around a great premise that has ramifications world wide, to the voice talent, to the superb traditional animation style that only Disney can deliver to audiences. The result really is a superb film.A magnificent parable that not only has exceptional high production values we come to expect from Disney animation, not only has good leads for the voice talent, but also has Bob and Doug McKenzie reincarnated as a couple of moose from "the great white north" (take off, eh!). For them alone I had to see this film. Their commentary and actual roles in the film are G-Rated Disney fare (no beer jokes here, eh), Further, the themes in this Disney film really do touch the hearts of all creatures and people. Even if you're a die hard scientist and atheist like myself, you'll come to understand that even though you know that the concept of ghost or spirits is a nonstarter to begin with, it is the process of looking to the beyond ("super-natural") that ultimately leads us to look to our own more rational judgment, and how said good sound judgment on matters of the heart stemming from our feelings, is a strength. The film really does go after divisions between the races, sexes and nationalities, though uses our own primal paleolithic history to bring forth such a tale. If I had any real criticisms of this film, and I can't say that I truly and honestly do, it's that we didn't see more creatures of the era. We aren't sure if we're seeing vaunted cavebears (larger than the largest grizzly and polar bears), we saw woolly mammoths and woolly bison, but we didn't see dire wolves, woolly rhinos nor some of the other animals of an era long gone ago. But, as with all negatives about this film, that's nitpicking.All in all a superb Disney film. Watch by yourself, with friends, or with the family.Enjoy as much of it as you can.

Joaquin Phoenix makes his Disney debut in Disney's 43rd animated classic in the Disney Canon. Here the Her star and Walk The Line Actor voices a hunter who magically becomes a bear.SynopisKenai(Phoenix) is an inunit hunter alongside his brother Sitka who kill bears. But when his brother get killed by a bear,Kenai gets his revenge on the bear who killed his brother and he kills the bear. But the great spirits(who also transformed Kenai's deceased brother into an eagle as his token that his grandmother gave him represented an eagle) magically lifts Kenai up into the air where he is magically transformed into a bear. Shocked by his new self he tries to find away to turn himself back into a human again. But when he befriends an adorable bear cub called Koda he soon discovers the meaning of friendship and loyalty and realizes that the bears aren't worth killing after all.Also when he finds out that Koda spotted him killing his mother in front of Koda's eyes he realizes what he has done wrong. But will he tell Koda what he did wrong? And will Kenai's other brother Denai know that Kenai is NOW a bear,and won't kill him either as revenge on Sitka?With vivid hand drawn animation,a brilliant soundtrack from my all time favourite musician Phil Collins who also did the score for the 1999 film Tarzan,interesting charcthers including two hilarious moose's called Rutt and Tuke and a great story to go with it Brother Bear is a nice heartwarming film and I was so glad to finally purchase this in HMV yesterday for a bargain alongside its sequel(which I will review later on soon when I get the chance to see it again as I remember seeing both films before but it was a long time ago).7 out of 10

I think this a very heart warming story for all ages!! It also shares a lesson that bears and people can get along and we can live for peacefully then what many people think! I am giving this a 7 because despite it's wonderful plot and story line there are some major moments in this movie where I cried like a baby!! For those of you have seen Bambi or other Disney movies you will know that almost every one of there movies actually does have 2 or more parts that really do make you cry like a baby!!! When I first watched this in the theatres I was like okay so I am going to see a Disney movie with my son so I am sure we will both enjoy a quiet night out and seeing a new Disney movie. When I left the theatre I was kike wow I almost want to go out and buy this movie again because it was just that good of movie!!! In fact I did go out and buy It right after we left the theatre and my son watched it again when we got back and I asked him why are you watching brother bear again and he said, I love it that much!! So in total I really think this is the best movie Disney as ever made!!