Bambi 2

Once upon a time...Walt Disney made timeless, beautifully animated classics for children, stressing the universal quality of the tale, and avoiding current references, cheap laughs (such as having animals fart) and in-jokes directed at adults. Well, folks, this wonderful films is a throwback to those days--its a grand, if often poignant, adventure in the woods, as Bambi learns to be courageous with the help of Thumper and Flower (back again, the former with four sweet, giggling sisters) and with his father.

This is, indeed, more a film for the present (since Mommy was taken away in the original) a Sonny-Daddy bonding movie, but the animation is gloriously anachronistic, carefully hearkening back to the classic Disney look, immersing the viewers, be they children or adults, in the luxurious changing seasons, all the while telling a solid story.

Some folks complain it isn't long enough, which I think is just another indication that we have become overstuffed and incredibly greedy--the original Bambi was a minute shorter than this, Dumbo just above an hour, and even Snow White only ten minutes longer. Do we need to SuperSize everything? Bravo Disney! If you had called this Prince Bambi instead of Bambi II, it would have cleaned up at the box office! Sensitive adults are advised to bring hankies.

Whenever I think about seeing movies that are sequels, I get some fear of what I'm going to find. This film, rendered directly to video, was never intended for the big theaters and has the disadvantage of following up on a film that was released decades earlier. In spite of all that, I confess that I liked what I found here, and I even find it difficult to understand why this film was never released in the big theaters.

The strongest and most favorable point of this film is the script, which is much more elaborate and interesting than the original film. In this film, set in the times immediately following the death of Bambi's mother, the young deer will try to adapt to living with a father he admires, but he doesn't know well and seems to maintain an aristocratic distance from everything and everyone. For this, he will try to respond to his father's wishes and prove to be more courageous and mature. It's a funny story, light, well-balanced and doesn't feel too sugary.

On a technical level, I think it is really necessary to highlight the good performance of the voice actors, in particular Alexander Gould and Patrick Stewart. The quality of the drawings, the elegance of a careful and well-defined line, the vibrant colors and the good light are the characteristics that most caught my eye in terms of visuals and cinematography. The soundtrack is quite good and does an excellent job.

I grew up watching the old Disney movies, and Bambi has always been one of my favorites. When I first saw that they were making a new Bambi movie, I was really torn. I hoped that it would be a good follow-up, but was afraid that it would ruin the whole Bambi experience.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that the movie, though not as good as the original is far surpassing many Disney sequels.

The animation quality is good. Not only is it much better than most of Disney's recent sequels, it is is actually up to, and at some points even surpassing, the animation in the original. The songs were beautiful, and to my immense relief, they are all sung in the background in the style of the original. There is only one point at which any of the animals sing. It was extremely cheesy, but mercifully short.

The only real failing of this movie is that it lacks the fresh, genuine feeling of the original. While Bambi I felt unique and novel, Bambi II often feels cliché and it seems like they are recycling some material from The Lion King. The addition of Ronno as an antagonist adds nothing to the story but goofiness and low-quality humor. The Great Prince's character seems to be the caricature "single dad" struggling to understand his kid. And while Bambi's character has always been humanized (as are all animals in Disney movies) he seems far more "human" and much less "animal" than he did in the original.

Overall, I liked this movie, and was able to get a few nostalgic moments. Although it does not quite live up to the original, it is nevertheless a sweet and enjoyable movie.

Bambi II is an in-between-quel set amidst the events of the first film, we see young Bambi alone without his Mother, his Father The Great Prince of the Forest watches over him until a suitable mother is found.

In a time when Disney sequels have been spewed out left and right most of which are annoying and just plain bad. It'd be easy to assume Bambi II would fit into that mess, however it does not.

Alexander Gould voicing Bambi is perfect, he sounds exactly like the original actor. Patrick Stewart voices the Great Prince, I wasn't sure if that was a good choice or not but it turned out to be great! Stewart's voice acting is dramatic yet humorous when needed.

Bambi II balances humor and drama much like its classic predecessor. Really the only part of the story I didn't like was the bully who one-upped Bambi all the time. He was pointless and clichéd.

The kids will love it and you should too!

Since The Walt Disney Company started to started to make direct-to-video sequels to their feature length theatrical releases in 1994 (with the release of "The Return of Jafar", sequel to "Aladdin"), it has earned an infamous bad reputation due to the often low quality of these sequels that seem to be made to capitalize on the original's name only, without really caring for delivering a good story, or good animation; almost as if there was not a real concern about making a good film. To my surprise, "Bambi II", the direct-to-video "sequel" (as it's more like an addendum) to the 1942 classic, is a considerable improvement over the previous series of sequels and it even surpasses most of the current Disney theatrical releases in terms of quality, art, and most importantly, entertainment.

"Bambi II" is about the long unexplored gap of the first "Bambi", covering the events between his mother's death and his growing up to adulthood. Under the care of his reluctant father, the Great Prince (Patrick Stewart), the young saddened deer (voiced by Alexander Gould) must learn to overcome his grief, his fears and to assume his place as heir of the position of Great Prince. However, his father is not too fond of caring for young children, so Bambi's tutelage will prove to be a difficult experience for both. Fortunately, Bambi will find some support from his friends, Thumper (Brendon Baerg) and Flower (Nicky Jones), but he'll also have to meet his soon-to-be rival, the mean deer Ronno (Anthony Ghannam), for the first time.

Making a follow-up for a classic like "Bambi" is not easy, but the fact that the writers (Director Brian Pimental and newcomer Alicia Kirk) decided to explore an entirely "missing chapter" in the life of the young deer instead of making a proper sequel, gave them enough freedom to create a story that not only is fresh and original on its own, it also gives continuity to the original without disrespecting it or blatantly copying it. Using the original film and Felix Salten's novel as inspiration, Pimental and Kirk craft a story about learning to be a father, and overcoming the loss of a dear relative, as well as about growing up and facing the vicissitudes of life.

Brian Pimental (one of the writers of the 90s classics "Beauty and the Beast" and "Aladdin") takes his first chance as director giving life to this story and he doesn't disappoint. With a respectful, almost humble approach to the original film, he manages to capture the essence of "Bambi" and setting up the events that lead to the original's conclusion. Most of the current direct-to-video sequels by Disney have distinguish themselves for a considerably lower quality in the art department, but "Bambi II" is truly an exception, as it seems that the animators really tried to stay true to the first film's style (although of course, there were some modernizations), as even some backgrounds were reused to keep the same art direction.

The young Alexander Gould (Nemo in "Finding Nemo") once again proves that he has an enormous future as an actor (at least for voices) and gives life to Bambi with a natural freshness. Patrick Stewart, who voices the Great Prince, truly gives the feeling of stoicism and coldness the Prince must have, as well as his hidden heart of gold, forced to be hidden by the Prince's duties. Overall, the rest of the cast make a very good work, considering they had to try to emulate the work done almost more than 60 years before. Without modern slang or self-referential phrases, the cast gives an effective (and welcomed) sense of continuity between this film and the first "Bambi".

"Bambi II" will surely please most fans of the original, but while it's an honest attempt to make a respectful and original addition to the main storyline, it becomes a bit too clichéd for moments. The use of a couple of pop ballads may prove damaging on the long road, as while the songs are really good, they take away that atemporal characteristic the first film had and will definitely make the movie outdated a lot sooner than expected. Anyways, when compared to the other sequels Disnaye has been releasing, this flaws are really minor, as "Bambi II" makes a nice addition that at times surpasses the current theatrical released Disney films.

Sure, "Bambi II" is not better than the original, and that's OK because it doesn't try to be better. This modest and humble addendum to the story succeeds in what it's set up to make and delivers good entertainment and brings back good memories of the original. Walt himself would be proud of this sequel to his favorite film. 7/10