Empire released a retrospective of Disney's 50 animated films (empireonline) and while I knew I hadn't seen all of them I was surprised I missed this one when it came out. Now that I've seen it I have to admit to finding it a bit sentimental and lacking the magic of some of their classics, but it's still a well-crafted hand-drawn work of art and I was overall pleased by the story. Kenai is the youngest of three brothers who must learn the value of love when his eldest brother dies. Mostly a simple story it has lots of heart. It's biggest flaw is how it seems to try too hard to be something it's not, and that's The Lion King. Phil Collins music is hit or miss and when it misses the mark I couldn't help but wish they had just cut the song out completely. On My Way and Welcome are the stand outs while the rest actually distract from the film. I would rather have heard more banter from the characters than Tina Turner singing, and I'm a huge fan of Miss Turner but her voice isn't the right match for this story. I watched the DVD's extras and heard the musical directors talk about how they didn't want to use too much Native American music because of its lack of range. To me that's a sign of a collective narrow mind. In the end I wish they would have given the story more depth. It's a dated animated film but still worth seeing if you love animation. Grade: B.
Spoiler: This isn't really a spoiler but it could be. Why on Earth did they give the film two different aspect ratios? It starts off in piller box and a third way through widens to Letterbox. Okay, I understand the effect they are trying for but it's not necessary. If it distracts from the story it's not important.
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