A Deer Caught In The Headlights Spotlight
It's no secret that Hollywood likes to cash in on cinematic success. These days it seems all a movie has to do is be moderately successful to garner a sequel... and even that is up for debate. Don't believe me? Just watch two minutes of Deuce Bigalow Gigolo, Male or European, and you'll see what I mean.
The reason sequels are so unnecessary is because they rarely deliver in the same way the original did. Speed didn't need a Speed 2. This Dirty Dancing fan doesn't want your Havana Nights. One Dream A Little Dream was more than enough, thank you very much.
But studios get greedy. Stars get greedy. Before you know it, we have a problem of Miss Congeniality proportions. Trying to change Hollywood's mind about cashing in on a good thing is a waste of breath. Mel Gibson had to feed his growing family so he made a zillion and one Lethal Weapons. Sylvester Stallone misses the spotlight so he's going back in the ring as Rocky. All of this I get, to a point.
But when cartoons become copycat casualties, I have to question authority. Shrek was great, but who authorizied a Shrek 2? An American Tail was also cute. It was about an adorable mouse who was looking for his family. But some suit, somewhere decided one mouse "tail" was simply not enough and thus, An American Tail: Fievel Goes West Was Born. Before long, Fievel was the Clark Griswold of the cartoon set, journeying here, there and everywhere. Look kids! It's Big Ben!
Which brings me to the latest cartoon to be overly redrawn, Bambi 2. For the record, the original Bambi was made in 1942. It was the story of a deer who was hailed as the young "Prince of the Forest" when he was born. But as Bambi grows older, he learns important lessons like how to see the forest for the trees and if a tree falls in the forest, whether or not it makes a sound. It was a touching, Disney classic that resonated with both young and old audiences alike.
But now, over 60 years later Bambi is back, and he's nobody's pawn fawn. This time around, Bambi is reunited with his father, The Great Prince, who must raise the young deer and teach him the ways of the forest. But who will do the real learning? The answer may surprise you, but chances are if you've ever seen any feel good movie, ever, it won't.
Now I'm confused, is the Bambi in Bambi 2 Bambi Jr? Or given that 60 years have gone by, could it be Bambi the third? Because the way I see it, the original Bambi is far too young to still be trying to find his way through the damn forest unless of course he has cataracts. Then they should be aiming for an entirely different demographic altogether.
Don't get me wrong, movies about animals are wonderful and more of them should be made for children. Dot and The Kangaroo was a great Australian cartoon I used to watch over and over as a child and cry each time I watched it. Milo & Otis? A great flick with real animals that had something important to say and said it through Dudley Moore. Then there was the adorable Fluke that chose Matthew Modine to speak on his behalf. Even Benji had his moment to shine although he didn't speak much. Turns out Benji was the strong, silent type. Who knew?
Sometimes sad things happen to real life animals. These are stories, depressing as they may be, that are worth telling. The other day a deer ran in front of our car and we narrowly escaped hitting it. Playing on the radio, I shit, you not, was The Bee Gees hit, Staying Alive. A real deer, my friends, knows where he stands.
In conclusion, I'd like to leave with a conversation involving one of the late, great sarcastic one linesmen of all time, Chandler (Matthew Perry) on Friends:
PHOEBE: Know what movie's really sad? Bambi. I cried for three days after I saw that. Well, it was really only two days because on the third day my mom killed herself, so I was mostly crying over that.
CHANDLER: See, that I could see crying over. But Bambi is a cartoon.
JOEY: You didn't cry when Bambi's mother died???
CHANDLER: Yes, it was really sad when the guy stopped drawing the deer.
The reason sequels are so unnecessary is because they rarely deliver in the same way the original did. Speed didn't need a Speed 2. This Dirty Dancing fan doesn't want your Havana Nights. One Dream A Little Dream was more than enough, thank you very much.
But studios get greedy. Stars get greedy. Before you know it, we have a problem of Miss Congeniality proportions. Trying to change Hollywood's mind about cashing in on a good thing is a waste of breath. Mel Gibson had to feed his growing family so he made a zillion and one Lethal Weapons. Sylvester Stallone misses the spotlight so he's going back in the ring as Rocky. All of this I get, to a point.
But when cartoons become copycat casualties, I have to question authority. Shrek was great, but who authorizied a Shrek 2? An American Tail was also cute. It was about an adorable mouse who was looking for his family. But some suit, somewhere decided one mouse "tail" was simply not enough and thus, An American Tail: Fievel Goes West Was Born. Before long, Fievel was the Clark Griswold of the cartoon set, journeying here, there and everywhere. Look kids! It's Big Ben!
Which brings me to the latest cartoon to be overly redrawn, Bambi 2. For the record, the original Bambi was made in 1942. It was the story of a deer who was hailed as the young "Prince of the Forest" when he was born. But as Bambi grows older, he learns important lessons like how to see the forest for the trees and if a tree falls in the forest, whether or not it makes a sound. It was a touching, Disney classic that resonated with both young and old audiences alike.
But now, over 60 years later Bambi is back, and he's nobody's
Now I'm confused, is the Bambi in Bambi 2 Bambi Jr? Or given that 60 years have gone by, could it be Bambi the third? Because the way I see it, the original Bambi is far too young to still be trying to find his way through the damn forest unless of course he has cataracts. Then they should be aiming for an entirely different demographic altogether.
Don't get me wrong, movies about animals are wonderful and more of them should be made for children. Dot and The Kangaroo was a great Australian cartoon I used to watch over and over as a child and cry each time I watched it. Milo & Otis? A great flick with real animals that had something important to say and said it through Dudley Moore. Then there was the adorable Fluke that chose Matthew Modine to speak on his behalf. Even Benji had his moment to shine although he didn't speak much. Turns out Benji was the strong, silent type. Who knew?
Sometimes sad things happen to real life animals. These are stories, depressing as they may be, that are worth telling. The other day a deer ran in front of our car and we narrowly escaped hitting it. Playing on the radio, I shit, you not, was The Bee Gees hit, Staying Alive. A real deer, my friends, knows where he stands.
In conclusion, I'd like to leave with a conversation involving one of the late, great sarcastic one linesmen of all time, Chandler (Matthew Perry) on Friends:
PHOEBE: Know what movie's really sad? Bambi. I cried for three days after I saw that. Well, it was really only two days because on the third day my mom killed herself, so I was mostly crying over that.
CHANDLER: See, that I could see crying over. But Bambi is a cartoon.
JOEY: You didn't cry when Bambi's mother died???
CHANDLER: Yes, it was really sad when the guy stopped drawing the deer.
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