The Film That Spurned Disney's Fascination With Nature

It's been critisized by some for its use of violence in depicting a natural wildfire which causes the death of Bambi's mother (not easy to explain to young children); and its been critisized by others as being "anti-human', or man, for its depiction of the hunting scene where animals are being shot at, including Bambi, who is himself wounded by a hunter. Yet, "Bambi" has come to represent the gentler side of Disney. For what it's worth, after the release of "Bambi", in 1942, Walt Disney began a long and fascinating affair with nature, and ultimately produced many fine nature documentaries, and nature themed films, none of which may have come to fruition without "Bambi". With hardly any words spoken throughout its entirety, "Bambi" relies heavily on its breathtaking scenery, and wide range of color to depict the landscape. The forest looks almost lifelike; and the fire is almost too real.

In the opening scene of "Bambi" it is springtime, the beginning of new life. Bambi is born. During his first days, Bambi's mother teaches him such things as how to walk. He makes friends as well; Thumper, a rabbit, and Flower, a skunk. They also help teach Bambi the ways of the forest.

When Bambi is first exposed to a meadow, his mother tells him it is a wonderful place, but he needs to remain cautious. Later, he finds out why, when man enters, causing all the deer to scramble for saftey in a frenzied flight. So now Bambi has been introduced to man, a creature he needs to fear if he is to stay alive.

The season changes to fall, and then to winter, rapidly. And soon spring is again on the horizon. And then ... the fire. In all the confusion, Bambi loses sight of his mother. After he reaches safety, Bambi inquires about his mother. He is told, "Your mother can't be with you any longer".

Bambi must face the new season without his mother now. When spring arrives, he, Thumper and Flower have grown. Bambi is attracted to another deer, Faline. They kiss, and Bambi is instancely in love. However, Bambi must put his feelings aside when man re-enters the forest. Again there is another scramble for safety. Faline is being tailed by some hunters, and Bambi goes in to help her, getting shot in the process. He makes it to safety, but must contend with another forest fire, set by the hunters who were camping nearby.

The cycle is thus complete. And new life is being born, and will continue to be born, live and die. There will be new perils to face, and new wonders to discover. This is the essence of "Bambi"; that nature is a continuous cycle of life and death, and eveything in-between is a wonderous adventure, and that all living creatures must live their lives to the fullest.

There is the subtle message intertwined, as well, that man can, and must. control certain elements of nature, if nature is going to continue to thrive. The second fire was the fault of man, caused by accident, but avoidable, which may have inadvertantly killed animals before it was extiguished. And man must learn to control himself, for if he does not, then he will not only destroy nature, but himself.

Walt Disney's greatest

"Bambi" is said to have been Walt Disney's favorite picture, and it's no wonder of that. This movie has my favorite songs from any Disney picture I've seen, including "Love Is a Song" and "Little April Shower." My favorite character is, of course, Thumper. He steals the whole show and he has a lot of great lines, which are usually hard to find in animated films nowadays. I hope that the Disney company will re-release this classic in theaters or on video, but one thing I hope they don't do is sell a whole lot of merchandising on it. Almost every Disney movie these days does that. Anyway, one more thing I want to say about this movie. The scene where Bambi's mother dies has left an emotional and lasting impact on generations of children who saw it. Although I'm only 16 years old, I saw this movie about a month ago and I felt the same way during that scene. That is what made Bambi so different from Disney's other efforts and what made it so important.

A simple little film -- NOT!

On one level, "Bambi" is just a little, animated film, just under 70 minutes, that tells the story of an orphaned deer growing up. Right? And an acorn is just a nut.

"Bambi" was made in 1942, but is still impressive in its animation, even in comparison to the computer-generated graphics of today. The colors are so lush, that you want to freeze some of the frames and hang them up on your wall. The beauty of Nature is captured here as well as in any film, animated or not.

"Bambi" is the story of one deer, but it is also a case study in the very basics of life: parental love, loss and grief, friendship, loyalty, balancing risk and need, growing toward independence, being at one and in harmony with Nature, and romantic love. It is a small film that covers more ground than many epic, megabuck productions.

"Bambi" did something else significant: for many, it altered people's view of deer and their relationship to Man. I recently read a study that looked at this issue, and one finding is that two things decreased markedly after the release of "Bambi" involvement in deer-hunting, and the value people in general place on deer-hunting.

Sometimes, in simplicity, there is perfection.