THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.
The reason why we enjoy films by Walt Disney Motion Pictures is because each of them finds a way to bring families together in the most positive manner possible. And a good example that shouldn’t be ignored is Brother Bear.
PLOT
The 2003 animated film takes place in a post-ice age Alaska where tribespeople believe that every creature is created through spirits in the form of an aurora. Kenai is the youngest between his other brothers Sitka (DB Sweeney) and Denahi (Jason Raize). He is excited to get a totem because if he can live by it, he can put his handprint on the wall, which will officially make him a man. He gets the ‘bear of love’ which confuses him due to his dislike of bears, despite that love is considered to be the most precious of totems. His dislike for bears is increased when one bear stole a fish basket he chose not to tie up. He chooses to go after it on his own to fix his mistake. He does find the creature but it pushes him to fall, barely hanging on to the edge of a cliff. Thankfully, his brothers followed him, aiding him in the conflict. The bear defends itself by pushing Denahi into a hole of the glacier they fight on top of. It tries to attack him an Kenai who is attempting to rescue him. As the bear attempts to strike them both when they’re off guard, Sitka saves them by dislodging the glacier. This takes his life but not the bear’s. Enraged, Kenai wants to avenge his brother but Denahi tries to live his totem of wisdom, knowing that the animal wasn’t in the wrong of what happened and killing it won’t make things better. He ignores the advice and eventually kills it some time after leaving home. The Spirits represented by Sitka in the form of an eagle (representing his totem of guidance) turns his brother into a bear and evaporates the body of the dead bear. When Denahi catches up, he mistakes Kenai to be dead and vows revenge, unaware that his brother is now a bear. Kenai falls off the cliff where he turned, but survives when landing into the rapids. The following morning, he meets the shaman of his tribe Tanana (Joan Copeland), who recognizes him but doesn't speak bear. When he is in shock of what he became, she advises him to find Sitka at the mountain so he can request to be human again. But he has to atone for his actions before he can get what he wants. When she disappears, he discovers various talking animals including two moose brothers Rutt (Rick Moranis)and Tuke (Dave Thomas), who don't believe his predicament. He gets caught in a trap but is saved by a bear cub named Koda who makes him swear to take him to a salmon run if he frees him. After avoiding a vengeful Denahi, Kenai chooses to stand by his promise when Koda acknowledges he got separated from his mother, hoping to reunite with her at the salmon run. He also shares that the location is next to the mountain he's trying to get to. They leave the next day and when Rutt & Tuke share they encountered Denahi, they agree to cover their tracks by riding mammoths. The bears eventually get off and head towards a geyser field. Denahi does catch up and attempts to kill them by pushing off the log they crossed. He tries to jump over but falls with the log. After that, the bears do reach the salmon run where many bears reside, led by Tug (Michael Clarke Duncan). While Koda's mother has not arrived, Kenai does find comfort with them before he intended to head straight to the mountain. At night, various bears choose to share stories. When it comes to Koda, he shares how he and his mother encountered three humans near a glacier, hence being separated. This shocks Kenai because he deduces that his mother was the same one he killed. He does end up telling Koda what he did, which understandably breaks his heart. Before Kenai heads to the mountain, he apologizes and wishes he can undo what he did. Koda finds it in himself to forgive him when seeing Tuke and Rutt make amends when the latter lost an antler on accident. When Kenai reaches the mountain, Denahi does confront him for the last time but the cub intervenes. He tries to take the spear but the human gets it back and Kenai attempts to sacrifice himself due to his newfound love for him. SItka appears and turns him back to human, which shocks Denahi. Although being glad to be himself again, he requests to be a bear again to look after Koda. Both brothers support this and he is quickly back to being an animal. Koda briefly reunites with his mother before she and Sitka return to the spirit world. The film ends with Kenai gaining his manhood by putting his paw print on the tribe's wall before staying with Koda and the other bears.
THOUGHTS
I have been seeing this movie since it came out in late 2003 and my opinion remains the same: I really like this movie. I honestly have a good time with this one with each viewing. The animation is aging well and Phil Collin's music is pleasant to listen to. I don't want to come off overrating this movie but I think the reason this one ages well because Directors Aaron Blaise and Robert Walker had us learn many lessons throughout. We mainly learn in the perspective of the protagonist Kenai. Thanks to Joaquin Phoenix's voice performance, we felt early on how impulsive he can be and determined to be a man. It is through his selfishness where we understand how revenge can lead to downfall and we must look at things in a different perspective. Kenai yelled in agony at the cliff because he hated how his brother is still dead. And his experience as a bear helps him understand Koda's mom was an innocent victim of circumstances. When it came to the twist, that really caught me off guard. I wouldn't believe anyone who claims they saw it coming. We also see how we must cherish family. Whenever he was with this brothers and Koda, he is aware how family can triumph all of the hardships along the way. And on top of that, his love for Koda helped him understand how powerful love can be because he couldn't blossom from outside until he was truly beautiful within. It is clearly difficult to forgive Kenai for what he did but he quickly understood that he would put himself through more pain if he didn't. Speaking of which, Jeremy Suarez embraces the same energy that the young Koda is all about, becoming easy to like in the process. Denahi makes a mark because he becomes more conflicted than his young brother. He originally wants to live by his totem of wisdom but can't do so when thinking he lost two brothers. The minute he realizes he could've killed Kenai, he realizes that he went downhill. It does come off rushed how he accepts the decision his brother makes, but what matters is that he loved him no matter what. Rutt and Tuke do come off unnecessary comedic relief because they do come off misplaced. That all changed near the climax when their brotherhood encouraged Koda to forgive Kenai. It works because it shows how in all of us, we are able to be rid of the negativity that bothers us. I got a soft spot for this movie but despite that, I can admit that there were some things that bothered me. First off, am I the only one wondering how did Sitka and Denahi have spare equipment for a catch when the mammoth Kenai rode destroyed it? I mean it was funny to see but they brushed it off quick that they still got fish without confirming if they got spare equipment. I know the plot is supposed to advance with him not tying up the fish basket, but god is he lazy for not doing it. One simple thing and he didn’t ever have to go through such a crazy journey. It did look funny seeing a family of bunnies ride a mammoth but that was unnecessary. They likely left when the herd chose to pass through the lake so I don’t see the point on them being part of the trip other than Koda’s random invitation. Also, I was slightly creeped out how the bear cubs used fish heads as costumes and the whole herd using a dead fish as a talking stick. I know these are animals and they live differently, but that was over the top for me. I also didn’t fall for the fake out in the climax where Kenai mistakes Denahi for eagle Sitka. His shadow had talons so I immediately knew as a kid it wasn’t his spirit brother. However, you'll still be enjoying this film once ignoring said flaws. In short, Brother Bear is another hit from Walt Disney for presenting great heartwarming messages. You want a movie that makes you appreciate family, check out this one.
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