A bit stale in the startup, you won't crack a
smile until daughter Dolittle Charisse opens her
birthday gift ... a chameleon who quips, "This isn't
Puerto Vallarta!" The lizard is every bit as charming
minus the "bud" advertisement.
But before the real fun begins, a rather overt
one-sided piece of environmentalist propaganda slaps
across the screen. Basically, the rodent Mafia
summons Dr. D. to save their forest from evil
loggers. Granted, saving forests and habitats is all
well and fine AND the story IS told from the animals'
point of view; it's just that loggers are a species
too.
In order to accomplish this task, DR. D. must find
a mate for the only existing Pacific Western bear in
the forest. That mate turns out to be a song and
dance man (err, bear) voiced marvelously by Steve
Zahn. He's endlessly lovable and pathetically
appealing. Further, Lisa Kudrow gives Ava (the wild
bear) a sweet, yet, bluntly delightful personality.
This is where the fun really begins. Archie (the
spoiled city bear) must learn to thrive in the
wilderness or Ava will be unimpressed with his
less-than-manly demeanor. In one wonderful scene, Dr.
D. explains the finer points of being ferocious as
Archie baths himself in a porcelain tub.
Dr. D., "How are you going to eat fish, if you
can't catch any?"
Archie, "Red Lobster."
Dr. D., "You sleep all winter in the cave, it's
called hibernation."
Archie, "Sounds more like depression."
Archie tries to roar, "Grrrr! Bears say 'grrrrr.'
Right?"
Eddie, Raven -Symone (Charisse), and Tank (Archie)
also give strong performances. Your kids will have a
lot of fun and they'll learn a bit about bears
too.
Fun Fact: Tank (Archie the circus bear's real
name) responded well to positive reinforcement says
director Steve Carr, "Tank would complete a take,
then sit there, and there would be a choir of 'Good
boy, good boy' [from the cast and crew] that would
last fifteen minutes. If I had received that much
positive reinforcement, I'd be president!" Carr also
maintains that although some puppetry and animation
was used, 90% of those you see on the screen are real
animals.
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