lisafordeay
Brother Bear 2 is a follow up to the 2003 animated classic of the same name and stars Joaquin Phoenix as the voice of Kenai a hunter who got transformed into a bear following the death of a bear that he killed and as revenge he got turned into a bear.This time however Phoenix didn't reprise his role so Grey's Anatomy Star and Enchanted actor Patrick Dempsey took over from Phoenix as the voice of Kenai. The story is about Kenai(Dempsey)and Koda(Suaze)who team up together to help an old friend of Kenai's called Nita(voiced by yup I will give you a clue she is an ex pop princess from the late 1990s and now she is the voice of Rapunzel from Tangled,any ideas well its Mandy Moore) who has to destroy an amulet so that she can get married.So together Nita,Kenai and Koda have to travel to go up some mountain where Nita has to destroy the amulet like I have mentioned before. But will Nita change her mind and does she have feelings for Kenai and will Kenai turn back into a human again?Overall I enjoyed this sequel. Its not a patch to the original as some of the charcthers from the first movie aren't in it and the original voice for Kenai wasn't in it either. So what did I like about it,for starters the animation is vivid and beautiful I love the traditional animation like when it was in the 1990s and before Disney went down the Pixar route. Also I like the charcthers too yet Nita kinda reminds me of Lilo's sister meets Pocahontas with Rapunzel's voice added along the mix(I will talk about the voice acting in a minute). Now to the not so good yet I didn't mind was the voice acting. Patrick Dempsey is a very underrated actor who stars in A lot of mediocre films(except Enchanted he was really good in that movie)here his voice isn't a patch compare to Joaquin's who was A lot better as Kenai in my opinion. Also Mandy Moore,I know im a big fan of her's since 1999,but here I couldn't get into her charcther instead all I could think of was Rapunzel from Tangled(which she did 4 years later after this movie). I dunno maybe its because im so used to hearing her voice in Tangled and not here,but still she has a very childlike presence about her and her voice is very youthful and not oldish. But still Brother Bear II is a great movie to watch and my advice is to watch the original first before seeing this one.I got this along with the first one last week for a great bargain and I was glad I bought it as it had a cute finale for the final part of the movie. Will there be a 3rd Brother Bear movie? hardly but still it was a cute movie.6 out of 10
Electrified_Voltage
"Brother Bear", released in 2003, is not one of the most popular Disney animated features, but like a number of the more popular ones, it did get the direct-to-video sequel treatment. "Brother Bear 2" was released in 2006. I saw the original for the first time just last month, nearly seven years after its release, and certainly didn't like it as much as some clearly do, but thought it was pretty good nonetheless. These Disney direct-to-video sequels aren't usually that good, and I figured this one would be no exception. Even though this one is more popular than some of the others, it didn't quite surpass my expectations. For the most part, I thought it was simply mediocre, with occasional funny moments, but also found that it got slightly better towards the end, so I thought it was still better than "Home on the Range".Kenai now lives happily as a bear with his orphaned foster brother cub, Koda. Winter is almost over, and the bears have just awoken from hibernation. On their way to Crowberry Ridge to get berries, Kenai and Koda stop to sleep, and Kenai has a dream about Nita, a childhood friend of his, and it is then obvious that he is haunted by his memories of her. Meanwhile, Nita is about to get married, but the wedding is interrupted by the Spirits, who make it clear that they do not approve! When they were children, Kenai gave Nita an amulet, and she will not be able to marry somebody else unless she makes it to Hokani Falls in time for the vernal equinox and burns the amulet, and Kenai has to go with her. Innoko, the "sha-woman," puts Nita under a spell so she can communicate with bears, and Nita goes out to find Kenai and begin the trek to Hokani Falls. Along the way, the three of them (Kenai, Nita, and Koda) face more than one problem.When I started watching this sequel, I already didn't find it very interesting, but knew this could change as the film went along. I didn't care much for the Nita character and the voice acting provided for her by Mandy Moore. The humour in "Brother Bear 2" usually doesn't work so well. Innoko, voiced by Wanda Sykes, is clearly supposed to be funny, but isn't, and basically, the same goes for Aunt Siqiniq and Aunt Taqqiq. Also Koda is once again pretty lame as a comic relief, and there are some poor lines in the film, such as Nita's comment when she sees Kenai as a bear for the first time. Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas returned to play Rutt and Tuke, the moose brothers based on the two actors' iconic "SCTV" alter egos, Bob and Doug McKenzie. If it weren't for them, the humour in this movie would generally miss the mark. The animation in this sequel is like that in the original "Brother Bear", pretty good, but not great. I also didn't find the adventure very entertaining for the most part. Towards the end, I found that there are some exciting and touching moments, which is what makes it slightly better at this point, and this is why I'm giving the film a 6/10 instead of a 5. So, "Brother Bear 2" may be entertaining for many kids and some adults as well, but unsurprisingly, like probably most of these direct-to-video sequels, I wouldn't call it a must-see.
Gavin Wilson
Disney outperformed itself in this sequel to "Brother Bear".Most sequels for movies for family viewing usually lack in most departments, but Disney really put the effort into this one.While the other "User Comment" covers the story line it missed in extolling the virtues of the movie. Some "Brother Bear 2" finer points are: 1. A solid first rate script for a family sequel--bonus points here.2. A first rate song selection with two new songs from Melissa Etheridge. Her two songs, "Just Feels Like Home" and "It will be Me" are excellent. "It will be Me" is my favorite, and now one or my all time favorites due to its guitar/orchestral music and touching lyrics.3. The return of the original cast--continuity is important for children. (Many actors deplore 'going back' and covering old ground--actors should consider the benefits and character-building these young minds derive from the casts's continued efforts in such sequels.)4. The simple illustration of friendship, loyalty, and self-sacrifice--the storyline easily shows the family the importance of keeping these qualities.If Disney writes another sequel on this Brother Bear theme and keeps the same higher quality, they should find it as well received and loved. While older kids may find the Brother Bear series story lines a bit slow to build, the younger children enjoy its pace, score, storyline, and characters. Brother Bear 2 is very "age appropriate" for their 'under' 8-year-old developing minds.My young son loves both "Brother Bear" and "Brother Bear 2" as much as other age appropriate animated movies for the younger children such as "Cars", "Ice Age", & "Monster's Inc"."Brother Bear 2" is a solid '9 out of 10' for its hitting the mark for the family with younger children.
