Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #9 in VHS
• Released on: 1994-03-03
• Rating: Universal, suitable for all
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Animated, Closed-captioned, Dolby, PAL, Surround Sound
• Original language: English
• Number of tapes: 1
• Running time: 66 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
It always comes up when people are comparing their most traumatic movie experiences: "the death of Bambi's mother," a recollection that can bring a shudder to even the most jaded filmgoer. That primal separation (which is no less stunning for happening off-screen) is the centerpiece of Bambi, Walt Disney's 1942 animated classic, but it is by no means the only bold stroke in the film. In its swift but somehow leisurely 69 minutes, Bambi covers a year in the life of a young deer. But in a bigger way, it measures the life cycle itself, from birth to adulthood, from childhood's freedom to grown-up responsibility. All of this is rendered in cheeky, fleet-footed style--the movie doesn't lecture, or make you feel you're being fed something that's good for you. The animation is miraculous, a lush forest in which nature is a constantly unfolding miracle (even in a spectacular fire, or those dark moments when "man was in the forest"). There are probably easier animals to draw than a young deer, and the Disney animators set themselves a challenge with Bambi's wobbly glide across an ice-covered lake, his spindly legs akimbo; but the sequence is effortless and charming. If Bambi himself is just a bit dull--such is the fate of an Everydeer--his rabbit sidekick Thumper and a skunk named Flower more than make up for it. Many of the early Disney features have their share of lyrical moments and universal truths, but Bambi is so simple, so pure, it's almost transparent. You might borrow a phrase from Thumper and say it's downright twitterpated. --Robert Horton

Synopsis
Disney's classic animated tale of life in the forest. It traces the natural cycle of a young deer from birth and adolescence to the birth of his own fawns.

Customer Reviews

Dear Deer
Bambi by today's standards of scripting and animation can all too easily be dismissed as a naïve, cutesy Disney standard from a bygone era. However, it survives as a master class in animated film, a major influence on all that came after it, and without any doubt a masterpiece of its time. To demonstrate, here are the three major ingredients in an animated film - animation, story and music...

The animation is flawless, the character design impeccable, the backgrounds works of art. The fire, water and snow effects today would be credited to a Pentium Processor near you, but in Bambi's day were all lovingly crafted by pen and brush, and stand up admirably in direct comparison. The dreamlike variation of shades to convey moods and emotions is yet more artistic insight that soon became the norm.

Bambi's narrative might seem simple and linear today, but the basic values have been recycled by many modern animated classics. A young creature, son of the king, loses a parent, falls in love with a childhood friend, survives a fire in his homeland before rising to the top, fathering the next generation and completing the circle of life. Replace the B with an S and transpose the vowels... fluke? I think not.

Finally, and this is what is most criminally overlooked about Bambi, the music is utterly beautiful. It is quite possibly the best soundtrack in any Disney film. Disney regulars Plumb and Churchill and have made some wonderful music but this must be some of the best and most credible in its own right. If you like Tchaikovsy, it is worth buying this film just for the music; maybe even Stravinsky-lite by the end. The songs interspersing the orchestral score are truly uplifting and memorable - try getting April Showers out of your head in a hurry. The icing on the cake is the immaculate synchronisation with the animation, the way every note coincides with a footfall, a tail wag, a drop of rain; it must have been a painstaking labour of love.

Once you have collected all the Fliks, Nemos, Sullys and Woodys of this world on DVD, don't forget spare a few bob for dear old Bambi. This disc, with typically convincing Special Edition extras, is the one to buy.

Bambi
The first time I saw this film as a child I cried. 25 years on, watching it for the second time, I cried again. Such is the beauty and power of Walt Disney's classic film which is, without a doubt, a masterpiece. The animation is wonderful (in the days before computers), the animals adorable and the music moving. Walt Disney was able to portray the life of a deer in the forest in such a simple, yet truly touching way, that it parallels the lives of us all growing up and learning about good and bad. One picture very clear from the film is how we, mankind, are seen to be destructive and outside of nature (you will see how well Disney showed this by change of music, colour and words such as "Man...has entered the forest"). But... nature always wins in the end. Watch, enjoy and hopefully be moved by Disney's magical masterpiece.

A Major Junior Tear-jerker
I saw this movie when it was first released. There's no doubt it visits the interaction between members of the family circle extremely well. Bambi, a fawn, is seen through his life-cycle from baby to full adult and through the major traumas he experiences - including the loss of his father in the forest fire. Here the magic of Disney is seen at its best. I can thoroughly recommend this movie. Better than Dumbo (in my opinion) but then Dumbo fans will surely disagree. You'll really like the music - you probably already know some of it without realising its source.However DO see this one. My VHS copy is now worn out and I'm waiting anxiously for the DVD to hit the shelves.