By Oliver Gable
Staff Writer
There is a 50 percent chance that a bear cub will survive its first year of life, but a 99.9 percent chance that viewers will love Disney’s new documentary, “Bears.”
Despite its patronizing narration, “Bears” is a documentary that both entertains and educates through the use of engaging cinematography, coupled with a fascinatingly in-depth, personality- filled look at the day-to-day life of actual bears.
Narrated by John C. Reilly (“Step Brothers,” “Talladega Nights”), this unstaged documentary follows the first year of life of two bear cubs, Scout and Amber, and their journey across the harsh Alaskan Peninsula with their mother, Sky. The film is an addition to Disney’s repertoire of heartwarming documentaries, the next in the same line of films that includes “African Cats.”
The unyielding sense of danger throughout “Bears” excels the film to a level of intensity not generally seen in nature documentaries. The family’s fight for survival in an unforgiving environment, up against everything from brutal weather to other vicious bears, takes viewers on an emotional ride. This is achieved not only through the film’s high-stake moments of danger, but also from genuine, unstaged footage, lending the documentary a true sense of realism. This is a pleasant contrast to most animal documentaries, which have a tendency to be overly mellow.
The cinematography throughout the film serves to enhance such emotion. The aerial shots of the vast wilderness give the viewer a visual scale of the bears’ obstacles, while both the underwater and close proximity shots help to depict the bears’ lives from the family’s perspective. This allows the viewer to build an intimate connection with Sky and her cubs, adding to the level of empathy.
Each bear’s individual personality lends to the character of the film. For example, Scout is overly adventurous and tends to wander away from his mother, while Amber is cautious and is constantly near her family. These are only some of the distinctions of the animals, and this personality not only helps the viewer distinguish each of the bears, but also humanizes them. This focus helps paint the bears in a better light to make them less random animals, and more so genuine characters.
The interaction between Sky, Scout and Amber gives a family- oriented feel to the movie, something Disney films have come to be known for. This exposure adds a strong emotional side to the film, creating a very well-rounded story. There is also a major focus on the interactions between various species, which shows the dually competitive and supportive roles animals play in nature.
The way the documentary is shot also condenses the film to a standard run time. The various uses of time-lapse photography help speed up the film, while still giving viewers the feeling that time has passed. This continuity prevents the viewer from feeling as if large parts of the bears’ lives were edited out.
The film’s only shortcoming comes from Reilly’s narration. The childish nature of Reilly’s persona in the film takes away from some of the more serious tones of the movie. Even worse, his attempt at voicing the bear cubs fails completely, becoming unbearable at times due to its overtly silly nature.
Despite this, “Bears” is an unexpected hit. Through its breathtaking footage and a thoroughly developed sense of charisma and realism, Disneynature has successfully created a wildly memorable adventure.
“Bears” is rated G and is now playing in theaters nationwide.
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