Bambi: The Reckoning

Review: Bambi: The Reckoning - A Disturbing Yet Stylish Horror Reboot

Bambi: The Reckoning is a bold and twisted reimagining of the beloved childhood classic - and surprisingly, it works. Turning a story about innocence and nature into a brutal tale of revenge and survival, the film embraces its absurd premise with full force and delivers a stylish, bloody horror experience.

The visuals are eerie and beautiful, with haunting forest landscapes and creative cinematography that give the film an almost fairy-tale nightmare quality. The creature design of Bambi is terrifying and impressive, combining grace with sheer menace.

While the plot is simple and leans heavily on horror clichés, it's effective. The pacing is tight, the kills are creative, and the atmosphere is thick with dread. The film also touches lightly on themes like environmental destruction and trauma, without becoming preachy.

Overall, Bambi: The Reckoning isn't for everyone - especially not for those hoping for nostalgia. But for horror fans looking for something bold, gory, and visually striking, this film is a wild and unforgettable ride.

Rating: 10/10.

Bambi: The Reckoning had a few decent moments, but overall it fell flat due to a lack of depth and emotional connection. The story felt underdeveloped, with barely any world-building or explanation around the who, where, or why of what was happening. None of the characters were particularly likable or compelling.

Even the kid, who should have been a sympathetic figure, just came across as kind of a blank slate. The mom made questionable choices, especially in how she handled the broken relationship between the father and son, and that dynamic was never explored in a meaningful way. The film seemed to rely on shock or sentimentality in the final act, but it didn't earn that emotional payoff.

The ending felt heavy-handed for a movie that hadn't taken the time to make you care about anyone. I usually enjoy these B-movie horror spins on fairy tales or childhood IPs, but this one just didn't land. It lacked heart, clarity, and ultimately any real reason to get invested.

"Bambi: The Reckoning" (2025), directed by Dan Allen, takes the beloved childhood character and twists it into a relentless, R-rated creature feature. Part of the "Twisted Childhood Universe," this film reimagines Bambi as a mutated, grief-stricken deer on a deadly rampage, seeking revenge on humans. While some critics note inconsistent pacing and CGI, many praise its effective monster design, creative kills, and willingness to lean into its wild premise. It's a bloody, unapologetic horror film that delivers on its promise of an unhinged Bambi.

Is it worth watching? If you're a horror fan looking for a campy, gory, and surprisingly fun take on a classic, and don't mind a B-movie aesthetic, then "Bambi: The Reckoning" is a surprisingly entertaining watch.

I went in with zero expectations but had an open mind. And this movie did exceed all my biases. I know that people might see these types of movies as a joke it B-films but if I'm honest this movie actually got a big amount of depth and exceeded the quality and fear factor of mainstream horror movies. I felt like I was watching a A24 movie due to the quality of cinematography and lines. It deserves to be seen on the big screen, otherwise you're not giving it justice for the art it actually is. Best horror movies I've seen 2025. Bambi is as real as it gets, no matter what preconditions you might have. I enjoyed it.

Mr. Allen direction to the Twisted Childhood Universe is solid as it is, many Disney fans are NOT going to love this as much as I did, this 81 minute short feature runtime went through fast paced and done in a way that made me intense. Putting my foot down, the Visual Effects on Bambi looks beautiful crafted well top to bottom, cast did not a bad performance but solid, I more into international indie films like this one, we just had Peter Pan's Neverland Nightmare back in January approx. (6 months ago), just got another film for the TCU which two TCU films in 1 year is extremely good, most of these films from the TCU are high expectations, usually once a year is enough to step back and work on another production. But 2 in 1 year is solid work, Thank you to the pre production team and the visual effects team who created Bambi as a monster that I adored.