Bambi

Bambi is the first of the final five Disney canon films to be reviewed, and it's quite a great way to start the home stretch as we get to see some of Walt's best films that he had made during his lifetime. Part of the reason these films are among the best is because this was during a time when animated films were new to Walt and still quite exciting territory to explore. Bambi was one film that made use of the multi-plane camera, and it really shows that they used this tool to its full extent.

Bambi is one of the Walt era's best looking films. The backgrounds are lush and have a sense of depth to them, it really looks like a forest is on screen instead of a flat looking background that is simply there. You can also really see a large attention to minor details such as the bark upon the trees or the way the rain becomes a small, rushing stream upon the ground during the April Showers song. There's also a very small moment where very early in the film, a small mouse washes his face with a rain drop on a leaf. These little bits  give the film extra touches and take a moment to build on the world around our main character. 

As far as music goes, very little stands out in my mind. While the songs are fairly good and serve their intended purpose, they just lack that extra oomph to stick around the next day unlike other songs. My favourite of the songs in this film is the Little April Showers song, a large part of it is because of the visuals we get to watch as the song plays out across the screen. An interesting note here is that none of the main characters sing the songs and instead we get the songs being sung in the background. There is one particular song where a bunch of birds sing a happy song, but none of them are characters that we actually know.

Story wise, Bambi is a far more realistic film in the canon. When we meet Bambi we learn he's a young prince, but this doesn't impact his story at all, it just suggests he's important enough for us to watch him. As we watch Bambi, we don't see him doing anything to work towards becoming a better prince or to do anything that would bring him glory. Instead we get to see Bambi simply living his life, discovering new things as he grows and with each changing season, he learns different lessons. This sense of learning is most evident during winter when Bambi experiences loss. Early on in the film Bambi learns of the danger in the meadow and the entire sequence is a bit tense because a person could almost expect that danger to rear its head, yet nothing bad happens save for a close call when Man first enters the forest. It is not until later, during winter, in which Bambi loses his mother in one of the most heartbreaking scenes in film. We never see it happen, nor do we ever see his mother again or the man who killed her. Instead we only get Bambi's cries for her and a very long silence that feels like forever as he realizes what has happened. This was a really bold move for Disney to take given how family friendly the company has always been, and yet it was well worth it for the emotional impact it has on the story, and on the audience. 

I'd like to finish up this review with a few quick notes on the characters themselves. All of our characters fit into the grand scheme of the film. Bambi and Faline meet early on in the meadow instead of having her be the  last minute lover interest who appears only near the end. Instead we get a chance to see them interact for a bit first before she seems to be forgotten as we move on to other experiences. Bambi's friends appear only long enough to provide new experiences and never wear out their welcome. I was rather surprised at how little time Flower had and had thought he was in more of the film. I do find the Friend Owl to be rather curious. While he can be interesting and rather funny, I do have to wonder what he eats if he's friends with all the little woodland creatures. 

4 1/2/ 5