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Brother Bear 2 Movie Review

Brother Bear 2 is a 2006 animated direct-to-video movie from Disneytoon Studios. It’s an okay sequel, but far from the level of quality of the original movie.

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“Once you love someone,

they stay in your heart forever“

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Yes, the original ‘Brother Bear’ was actually very strong and one of the best Disney movies of the 2000s. It remains immensely underrated. This sequel tries to emulate the tone of the first movie and it somewhat succeeds in that area, but the storyline itself is so much slighter and less memorable this time around.

Gone is the emotional investment here. Before, I cared strongly for the characters and the ending was so moving for me. But here, none of it was moving because all of it was so expected and, as a result, rather dull.

The movie is almost a straight rehash of the first flick, but at least in some scenes it tries to be somewhat different. Still, the ending is so similar that really the intention was obvious to just replicate the heart of its predecessor.

Kenai and Koda are much less memorable this time around. They are still wholly likable and endearing, but their story here is far from great and they did not get enough screen time to shine, which was unfortunate, though the voice acting remains solid. Rutt and Tuke are still just as goofy, but not as funny in my opinion.

Let’s talk about Nita. I really did not like this character as she was basically a rehash of Pocahontas with her storyline being literally the same. It was horrendous how much they copied that film here with the arranged marriage subplot being particularly offensive. And she was not as important to this movie and was just thrown in to make the same plot happen once again, but with a newer character.

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The animation in Brother Bear 2 is actually quite solid for the studio’s weak standards, but the soundtrack not so much. Melissa Etheridge clearly tried to emulate Phil Collins, but she just could not make it work. The songs are okay, but quite forgettable.