After the imagination, flair and sheer spectacle of 'Finding Nemo', it's a little disappointing that the first major studio animation picture since doesn't quite stand up. Financed by Disney (funnily enough), 'Brother Bear' is set at the tail end of the Ice Age and follows the conventional coming of age animation formula. After his brother Sitka (D.B. Sweeney) is killed trying to save him, a young boy, Kenai (Phoenix) learns that the wisdom of manhood can only be attained after he is turned into a bear by the spirits (go figure, stoner boys). Once he's transformed, however, Kenai soon runs into all manner of difficulties, not least those presented by his own family, who are desperate for some heavy duty bear vengeance for the attack which led to their son's death.
Almost quaint in its animation style, but supremely moralistic in tone, 'Brother Bear' feels dramatically leaden and turgid. Drenched in family values, the plot preaches in such a heavy-handed manner that even the youngest of viewers may soon tire of its moral messenging. And even if the condescending delivery doesn't push adults over the edge, the score by Phil Collins probably will. A little more humour and enthusiasm with a lot less self-satisfaction would have gone an awful lot further.
