Like Dumbo, Bambi is one of the best main characters ever brought to life by Disney. As we follow his journey through life, we feel like we have quite literally grown up with the young prince in this tremendous forest, and that is a testament to Walt Disney and his team with their amazing ability to create emotion within the audience upon watching a deer live his life. With hardly any dialogue to assist in his characterization (and the dialogue really is not necessary for Bambi), Bambi works his way into our hearts and makes us feel as if he is one of our very own. His sidekicks, Thumper and Flower, are simply scene-stealers. As Bambi grows, so does Thumper and Flower, and with this comes some genuinely hilarious and touching scenes, including the scene where the trio experiences winter for the time and the one where Friend Owl explains what it means to be "twitterpated" (Don't remember that scene? Do yourself a favor and watch it here).
One cannot review Bambi without mentioning the tragic, life-defining scene with Man in the forest. As Bambi and his mother wander through the meadow, Bambi's mother senses something awry. She implores Bambi to run and don't look back. The scene remains focused on Bambi as he frantically seeks shelter when suddenly, the noise no one wanted to hear rings out: a gunshot. We never actually see the act being committed, and that is what makes this scene all the more powerful. When Bambi finally arrives at his home, he exclaims, "We made it, Mother!" With that one sentence and the following moments, Bambi breaks our hearts like never before. Not only is this sequence one of the best in animation history; I would put this scene into the conversation of greatest scenes in cinema history period.
Bambi is a masterpiece. There is really no debate on that matter, in my opinion. From beginning to end, we are witnessing pure magic.
Rating: 10/10
Historical Significance: Bambi was originally scheduled to be Disney's follow-up to Snow White. However, Walt's dedication to perfection and total realism caused the project to be pushed back until 1942, after the releases of Pinocchio, Fantasia, The Reluctant Dragon, and Dumbo. One creative choice Walt made for Bambi during this delay was that he wanted actual children to voice the characters in their adolescence, something unheard of prior to Bambi as adults would just do children's voices normally. Another strategy was to encourage the animators to watch the real life movements of deer and the other animals in order to properly capture their essence.
Behind the Scenes: There are only about one thousand words spoken throughout the entirety of the film, but perhaps the most famous line comes from Bambi's mother after her first encounter with Man. She says to Bambi, "Man was in the forest." This would evolve into a code used by employees at Disney to warn others that Walt Disney was present and could be coming around to check out the work they were doing. Furthermore, Bambi is the final full-length feature film for Disney until 1950. Due to World War II, a majority of Disney's employees served their country in battle while the money used for materials became more and more scarce as well. This is why from 1942 to 1949, Disney released projects that consisted of a number of short films combined to make one film.
Favorite Character: I almost went with Thumper, but I have to go with Bambi here. As I mentioned before, Bambi is simply a gem of a character. His character is so well developed in every stage of his life that we can relate to his journey on a very personal level. We know what it's like to grow up with all of its ups and downs. For some, we know exactly what Bambi is going through after losing his mother. We all know the dangers and joys of being "twitterpated" too. Bambi is a deer, yes, but his circumstances are very human.
Favorite Scene: The term "favorite" is quite misleading in this case because although the scene with the death of Bambi's mother is by no means a happy occasion, it is by far the best scene from Bambi. It absolutely rips my heart out and crushes it into a million pieces, especially when Bambi cries a single tear through the snow after the Great Prince informs him, "Your mother can't be with you anymore." It is such an iconic scene and a masterclass in handling tragedy in films.
Favorite Song: Bambi is not your typical musical because none of the characters on screen actually sing. Instead, all of the songs are sung off-screen by a soloist or choir, and the songs performed in Bambi are the perfect additions to the film's tone and character.I would have to single out "Little April Shower" as my favorite because when coupled with the animation, it truly transports you to this forest (Watch it here!).
Miscues: Once again, if you have a miscue for Bambi, you might be missing a soul.
Updated Ranking: Ranking these first five films is next to impossible because I love them all so much, but here is how they stand right now.
- Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
- Pinocchio
- Dumbo
- Bambi
- Fantasia
As I previously stated, after Bambi, Disney is effected immensely by World War II. They no longer have the staff or the money to produce full-length feature films, so instead of shutting down the studio entirely, Walt begins to make what I call "combination films," as I described earlier. Tomorrow, we begin this uniquely important era in Disney history with our first combination film, Saludos Amigos!
-Cody Fleenor
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