Les aventures de Perri

Filled with mega cute images, with even more mega cute pets, and the fight for food, safety, survival, all beautiful, although sad in some aspects, the various moms in the movie, each defending their puppies in their own way...

This was gripping. Always wanted to watch a film about a squirrel. Can finally tick that one off! Disney's "true life fantasy" was quite effective in its portrayal of the life of Perri and her lover, Porro. After all, who doesn't create their own stories and narratives when watching wildlife documentaries?

It has a bit of everything:

• Squirrel romance and dodgy 'home' renos
• Beaver chewing down a tree with a squirrel in it
• Raccoons and skunks brawling
• A skunk joining a raccoon family by mistake
• The cosiest squirrel den ever
• A psychedelic dream sequence
• A magpie poking a squirrel on the ass
• Raccoons fishing
• "The face of death"

It definitely showcases the cycle of life and was a bit sad in parts. There's certainly a lot of bad things out to get you in life and Perri doesn't shy away from it. It also features a wildfire sequence sure to trigger fellow Australians after we lost 1 billion animals to our bushfire crisis earlier in 2020.

Ultimately, I really liked this and found myself smiling and laughing throughout. Go Perri!

Half-documentary/half-fantasy on the life cycle of a female squirrel named Perri, surviving the seasons in the forest, even falling in love! This superb family film was initially to be part of Walt Disney's continuing True-Life Adventures series, yet is (arguably) improved upon with the additions of plot, comedic effects, and a beautiful squirrel-dream sequence. The photography is superb, the bemused narration enjoyable, and (as always) Disney underscores the rote stretches with blissful music. Perhaps a bit lengthy for some viewers, but bright children should really enjoy it. Quite entertaining! *** from ****

Squirrels are lovely looking and cute animals, if also pests at times (like scurrying loudly across a not so sound proof house roof at night for instance). They are not focused upon enough in documentaries and there are not an awful lot of documentaries centered solely around squirrels around. Granted, in terms of factual information and detailing strengths and challenges there are more interesting animals, but the True Life Adventures series did manage to make insects interesting in 'Secrets of Life'.

Part of me as a result thought that there was a very strong chance of 'Perri' doing for squirrels, in terms of making animals/species that aren't focused upon a lot compelling, what 'Secrets of Life' did for insects. 'Perri' did just that, it did make squirrels interesting and relatable with one of the True Life Adventures series' most easily investable lead characters. And it did make me feel that it is a shame that they are under-estimated and that documentaries don't focus on them enough. For the most comprehensive and most accessible documentary on squirrels, it doesn't get a lot better than this.

Is 'Perri' perfect? No. Like with the other True Life Adentures feature films (actually didn't feel the same way oddly enough with the short subjects in the series), there is some occasional awkward over-jokiness though it was done worse in some of the other feature films in the series, including the best known ones.

Would have liked for it to have been longer too perhaps.

However, so much is good about 'Perri'. It looks absolutely beautiful, with very vivid photography capturing the majestic beauty yet at times uncompromising cruelty of the scenery. Especially the unforgettable hibernation dream sequence, which is a visual and emotional masterpiece and one of my favourite scenes of the series. The music has energy and atmosphere, not spilling out the emotions too much.

Much is informative here, 'Perri' is one of the ones where a lot of information was pretty new to me and any familiar material felt fresh. Most of it unfamiliar, meaning that as far as the True Life Adventures series and its feature films go 'Perri' for me was one of the more educational ones. It was interesting having a subject very different to what is usually seen in nature documentaries, to focus on a type of animal that is not covered a lot was refreshing. And in a way that made me sad why squirrels aren't discussed enough in documentaries and they are much more interesting than they seem.

Did find it very cute, without it being overly so, and charming and the titular character is loveable and easy to engage with. Winston Hibler is a good natured narrator and have never felt him dull sounding. The narration entertains and teaches, as well as easy to invest in emotionally.

Concluding, very good and well worth watching. Especially if you want to learn more about a very under-explored animal. 8/10.

A Walt Disney TRUE-LIFE FANTASY.

This is the story of PERRI, a female forest squirrel. We follow her life through the seasons of one year, learning the incredible struggles her kind must make to survive. We watch her deal with fierce predators & a devastating wildfire, before eventually finding a mate.

This is a splendid family film, based on the book by Felix Salten, the author of `Bambi'. (In fact, Bambi makes a live-action appearance). Using great nature photography - and a little bit of Disney special effects magic - it is a heart warmer that is sure to stay in the viewers' memory.

Highlight: Perri's wintertime dream. The story, told entirely in verse, is narrated by Winston Hibler.