Review by John Delia
Disney has made available Brother Bear and Brother Bear 2 in a special 3-Disc Blu-ray Combo Pack. The two animated films are kid friendly and feature a very fun adventure that’s filled with good family values and an important lesson in life. Brother Bear received an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature in 2003.
The adventure begins when Kenai, an Eskimo boy, kills a bear. Since his choice was unnecessary a special spell is cast turning Kenai into a bear. Now afraid and puzzled Kenai tries to come to grips with the event. His brother who was killed by a bear comes to him in a vision telling him that he must travel to the Northern Lights to be able to turn back into a human. With the help of a young cub named Koda, the two make their way on the long journey with Kenai seeing life from a different perspective through the eyes of a bear.
The film has a lot to say about how precious life is especially with Kenai own human brother trying to track the bear down for revenge. It’s a dilemma that reveals how people rush to judgement, turn to the unexpected for help and end up finding how important friendship can be.
Featuring a fine cast that includes the voices of Joaquin Phoenix as Kenai, Jeremy Suarez as Koda and as the very comical Moose Rick Moranis as Rutt and Dave Thomas as Tuke.
The fun continues in Brother Bear 2 when the Kenai, still a bear wants to get to see his true love Nitka who he has not seen since turning into a bear some years ago. With the help of Koda they find her about to get married. However, the ancestors cannot let the marriage take place unless Kenai breaks the bond between them.
The two make a great family fun pack and do come with some kid fun bonus features.
BONUS FEATURES:
Brother Bear has the following extras on the Blu-ray.
- “Deleted song”
- “Deleted Scenes”
- “Hilarius Animated Outtakes” also on the DVD
- “Sing-Along Songs” also on the DVD
- “A Music Video”
- “The Making of Brother Bear”
- And More
- Brother Bear 2 as the following feature;
- “Behind the music of Brother Bear 2” also on the DVD
The visual quality of the Blu-ray is crisp and clear providing a theatrical like presentation on my 16×9 television. The 1080p High Definition with the 2:35.1 Aspect Ratio on the Blu-ray for Brother Bear 1 and a 1:78.1 ratio for Brother Bear 2 will make a perfect entertainment venue for the kids. The colors are vibrant and the white are perfect for the snow.
The audio quality by far is excellent for the whole family with the 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio. There’s no distortion that I could detect and all the fun dialogue is easily understandable (Of course the moose may get out of hand sometimes however, but if you rewind you’ll catch all the adult level inferences).
FINAL ANALYSIS: A fun time for the kids and the young at heart. [rating=4]
Specifications and additional film information:
- MPAA Rating: G for both
- Genre: Comedy, Animation
- Running Time: “Brother Bear” 1 hr 25 min, “Brother Bear 2” is 1 hr 13 min
- Street Date: March 12, 2013
- Original Theatrical Release: Brother Bear- November 1, 2003; Brother Bear 2- August 29, 2006
- Language: English
- Format: Blu-ray, DVD
- Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (Blu-ray), Dolby Digital 2.0 (DVD)
- Video: 1080p 2.35:1 Aspect Blu-ray, 1.78:1 DVD
- Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French
- Number of Discs: 3 Discs
- Distributed by: Buena Vista Home Entertainment
Writer, critic, film editor John Delia, Sr. has been on all sides of the movie business from publications to film making. He has worked as a film critic with ACED Magazine for more than 20 years and other publications for a total of 40 years. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Florida. John is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association and Critics Association of Central Florida Send John a message at jdelia@acedmagazine.com
