Bears

Calling Bears a Nature Documentary may be an overstatement.  I'm sure even very little kids won't learn much about the animals by watching this film.  However, it is beautifully shot, and entertaining in its own way.  It may be light on content, but it can be a lot of fun to watch.

The film follows a mother bear and her two newborn cubs as they spend a year together in the Alaskan wilderness.  The filmmakers have dubbed the mother Sky, and the cubs Scout and Amber.  We witness as they fend off wolves, rival bears, and even face the dangers of an avalanche and starvation, when it looks like Sky may not be able to find enough salmon to feed herself in order to keep on producing milk for her cubs.  But concerned parents needn't worry.  The film is G-rated, and the worst thing that happens is a wolf steals a fish from a bear.  The film may be sanitized and shy away from some of the harsher realities of the wild, but that's not to mean it doesn't create some form of tension.  When you see the mother Sky dangerously thin from a lack of food at one point, your heart can't help but go out to the creature, and you might even find yourself a little bit involved as I did.

To further add to the cuteness factor of the film is the often goofy narration supplied by John C. Reilly.  He not only narrates the story of Sky and her cubs, but he also often comments on the action, or provides voices for the bears on the screen.  When Scout and Amber are born, he greets the two with a friendly, "Hi, guys!".  And when we catch a glimpse of a lazy bear lounging in the grass, he comments, "He looks like my dad when he falls asleep in front of the TV".  Whether its telling us what Scout is probably thinking when he gets his claw stuck in a clam shell, or ridiculing another bear for "not having any game" when it's unsuccessful at wooing a female, Reilly obviously is improvising a lot of this stuff.  In a more serious documentary, his commentary would be an awkward fit.  But it works well enough in a kid's movie, which is precisely what Bears is.

What will keep the adults in the audience captivated is the scenery shot by directors Alastair Fothergill and Keith Scholey, who directed the earlier Disney nature documentary, African Cats.  There are some amazing time lapse shots of nature changing through the seasons during the course of the year, as well as some spectacular nature shots.  During the end credits, we get to see some behind the scenes footage of how some of the scenes were filmed or obtained, and it's worth staying in your seat so you can watch them.  It does make you want to see what this team could do in a more gripping documentary, however.  At the very least, it will make you want to look up photos and videos of the Alaskan wild when you get home.

Based solely on the simple level it strives for, Bears is effective.  Just don't expect to learn much.  But do expect to be awed by the beautiful shots, and to smile more than once while watching it.  Watching the film, I know I was being manipulated the entire time, and this was the Disney-friendly version of nature.  What's amazing is that I didn't care.

See the movie times in your area or buy the DVD at Amazon.com!

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