Review of Brother Bear (2003) by Marna — 11 Apr 2010

In the movie Brother Bear, it tells the story of a boy who wants to become a man and prove his role in the tribe. At his cermony, he finds out that his representative figure is a bear, which symbolizes the gift of love. His brothers possess the gift of guidance and the gift of wisdom. With time, men learn their true purpose and eventually understand completely what they are meant to do in their role. Kenai is the main character and when he doesn't perform the task his older brother asked him to do, he gets fussed at and takes his anger out on a bear that he believes ate all the fish that was gathered before his ceremony. Going after the bear, his brothers both become involved and his eldest brother ends up dying.

When Kenai kills that bear, he is magically transformed into a bear himself and the only way for him to be changed back is to realize what he has done. On the way to the mountains where he can be changed back, a little cub named Coda, tags along and becomes his friend. Not until the end of the movie does Kenai realize the bear that he killed was Coda's mother. He feels so awful that when he finally is transformed into a human again, he wants to be a bear to be there for Coda.

This movie definitely relates to World Religions because it deals a lot with spirits and ancestrial traits like of the Indigenous Religions. Spirits are responsible for what happens in a tribe and they are believed to be the most important. It also relates a little bit towards being reincarnated. When people are born again, they come into a new form although Kenai was already grown. Chants and ceremonies took place just like other religions do every day and that is also an important factor in World Religions. It is a fantastic religion movie that gives a good example of a relation to religions and their customs.