Brother Bear
Director: Aaron Blaise, Robert Walker
Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, D.B. Sweeney, Joan Copeland, Jason Raize, Jeremy Suarez, Michael Clarke Duncan, Dave Thomas, Rick Moranis
Disney’s 44th animated film “Brother Bear” follows the story of Kenai (Joaquin Phoenix), a young Inuit warrior who must embark on a journey to the mountain where the lights touch the Earth, to become human again, after the Spirits transform him into a bear, following his brother’s death.
Love is the most powerful theme in this film, and it is expressed quite vividly in the three brothers – Sitka, Kenai, and Koda.
For Kenai, love is expressed in three ways: through the journey he takes to understand and appreciate his totem, through the bond of brotherly love that entwines Kenai with his brother, Sitka, and through the love that is born between Kenai and Koda, a young bear cub that Kenai befriends on his journey to the sacred mountain. When Kenai is given his totem by his tribe’s wise shaman, Tanana (Joan Copeland), she tells Kenai that to become a man, his actions must be guided by his totem: the bear of love. Tanana explains to Kenai that love is the most precious of totems, and as such, love will reveal itself to Kenai in unexpected ways. She advises Kenai to let love guide him, and one day, he will become a man, and he will be worthy of placing his handprint on the sacred wall, alongside his ancestors’ handprints.
Sitka expresses his love when he sacrifices his own life to protect his brothers from the bear that attacks them. Although Sitka’s sacrifice is one born from love, his death creates a deeply rooted hatred in his brother Kenai’s heart; a hatred that compels him to return to the mountain to avenge his brother’s death. Earlier in the story, Kenai tells Sitka that a bear cannot express love or emotion, and he laments having the bear as his totem. When Kenai kills the bear to avenge his brother’s death, his actions were born from hatred, not from love. To teach his irate brother a lesson, Sitka transforms Kenai into the very creature he despises – the bear – to teach Kenai the true meaning of his totem. The first time Sitka transforms his brother into a bear, he does this, so that Kenai will learn a lesson about love. The second time Sitka transforms Kenai is when Kenai chooses to remain a bear, so that he can love and protect Koda, after the little bear's mother dies.
When Kenai is transformed into a bear, Tanana tells him that he must go to the mountain where the lights touch the earth, if he wants Sitka to change his fate of being a bear. Along the way, Kenai meets a young cub, named Koda, who was separated from his mother. Although Kenai’s hatred of bears is still burning in his heart, and he has absolutely no desire to become the guardian for this chattery, young cub that has been foisted on him by his brother, Kenai grudgingly allows Koda to join him on his journey. Their first moment of real connection is when they see the “night rainbow” where the spirits dwell. Kenai tells Koda that his brother is a spirit in the living lights, and Koda thanks Sitka for allowing his path to be entwined with Kenai’s, because he always wanted a big brother. We then see an eagle watching over them as they sleep. This eagle is Sitka’s spirit, following his brother on his journey. Kenai's moment of transformation comes when he and Koda are at the river, and Kenai realizes the truth...that he was to blame for making Koda an orphan, because the bear he killed was Koda’s mother. When he tells Koda the truth about his mother's fate, Kenai realizes that it was not the bear who was the monster...it was his own lust for revenge that made Kenai the monster. This is illustrated when Kenai is searching for Koda and sees his footprint in the snow. He turns the footprint of the bear, into the hand of a man…symbolizing that it was this part of his identity who was the real monster…not his identity as a bear. In the end, Kenai became a man by becoming a bear…and by choosing to remain with Koda, as his brother, and protecting the little bear, rather than returning to his tribe. When he joins Tanana at the sacred wall again, the print he leaves on the wall is not a handprint…but the mark of a bear’s pawprint…to signify that Kenai has finally become a man.
While Brother Bear is not my favorite Disney movie (that honor belongs to Beauty and the Beast), I do have to appreciate the stunning animation this movie has. The story is very heartfelt, and I found myself having a very deep and emotional connection to the characters, having felt that excruciating loss myself when my own mother died. The casting is stellar (particularly for Joaquin Phoenix who voices Kenai and Jeremy Suarez who brings cheeky little Koda to life. I would highly recommend this film.
© 2022 Keriane Kellogg
Director: Aaron Blaise, Robert Walker
Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, D.B. Sweeney, Joan Copeland, Jason Raize, Jeremy Suarez, Michael Clarke Duncan, Dave Thomas, Rick Moranis
Disney’s 44th animated film “Brother Bear” follows the story of Kenai (Joaquin Phoenix), a young Inuit warrior who must embark on a journey to the mountain where the lights touch the Earth, to become human again, after the Spirits transform him into a bear, following his brother’s death.
Love is the most powerful theme in this film, and it is expressed quite vividly in the three brothers – Sitka, Kenai, and Koda.
For Kenai, love is expressed in three ways: through the journey he takes to understand and appreciate his totem, through the bond of brotherly love that entwines Kenai with his brother, Sitka, and through the love that is born between Kenai and Koda, a young bear cub that Kenai befriends on his journey to the sacred mountain. When Kenai is given his totem by his tribe’s wise shaman, Tanana (Joan Copeland), she tells Kenai that to become a man, his actions must be guided by his totem: the bear of love. Tanana explains to Kenai that love is the most precious of totems, and as such, love will reveal itself to Kenai in unexpected ways. She advises Kenai to let love guide him, and one day, he will become a man, and he will be worthy of placing his handprint on the sacred wall, alongside his ancestors’ handprints.
Sitka expresses his love when he sacrifices his own life to protect his brothers from the bear that attacks them. Although Sitka’s sacrifice is one born from love, his death creates a deeply rooted hatred in his brother Kenai’s heart; a hatred that compels him to return to the mountain to avenge his brother’s death. Earlier in the story, Kenai tells Sitka that a bear cannot express love or emotion, and he laments having the bear as his totem. When Kenai kills the bear to avenge his brother’s death, his actions were born from hatred, not from love. To teach his irate brother a lesson, Sitka transforms Kenai into the very creature he despises – the bear – to teach Kenai the true meaning of his totem. The first time Sitka transforms his brother into a bear, he does this, so that Kenai will learn a lesson about love. The second time Sitka transforms Kenai is when Kenai chooses to remain a bear, so that he can love and protect Koda, after the little bear's mother dies.
When Kenai is transformed into a bear, Tanana tells him that he must go to the mountain where the lights touch the earth, if he wants Sitka to change his fate of being a bear. Along the way, Kenai meets a young cub, named Koda, who was separated from his mother. Although Kenai’s hatred of bears is still burning in his heart, and he has absolutely no desire to become the guardian for this chattery, young cub that has been foisted on him by his brother, Kenai grudgingly allows Koda to join him on his journey. Their first moment of real connection is when they see the “night rainbow” where the spirits dwell. Kenai tells Koda that his brother is a spirit in the living lights, and Koda thanks Sitka for allowing his path to be entwined with Kenai’s, because he always wanted a big brother. We then see an eagle watching over them as they sleep. This eagle is Sitka’s spirit, following his brother on his journey. Kenai's moment of transformation comes when he and Koda are at the river, and Kenai realizes the truth...that he was to blame for making Koda an orphan, because the bear he killed was Koda’s mother. When he tells Koda the truth about his mother's fate, Kenai realizes that it was not the bear who was the monster...it was his own lust for revenge that made Kenai the monster. This is illustrated when Kenai is searching for Koda and sees his footprint in the snow. He turns the footprint of the bear, into the hand of a man…symbolizing that it was this part of his identity who was the real monster…not his identity as a bear. In the end, Kenai became a man by becoming a bear…and by choosing to remain with Koda, as his brother, and protecting the little bear, rather than returning to his tribe. When he joins Tanana at the sacred wall again, the print he leaves on the wall is not a handprint…but the mark of a bear’s pawprint…to signify that Kenai has finally become a man.
While Brother Bear is not my favorite Disney movie (that honor belongs to Beauty and the Beast), I do have to appreciate the stunning animation this movie has. The story is very heartfelt, and I found myself having a very deep and emotional connection to the characters, having felt that excruciating loss myself when my own mother died. The casting is stellar (particularly for Joaquin Phoenix who voices Kenai and Jeremy Suarez who brings cheeky little Koda to life. I would highly recommend this film.
© 2022 Keriane Kellogg