{"id":77738,"date":"2019-10-06T09:07:48","date_gmt":"2019-10-06T08:07:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/newsforher.com\/?p=77738"},"modified":"2019-10-06T09:07:49","modified_gmt":"2019-10-06T08:07:49","slug":"long-before-joker-joaquin-phoenix-got-downright-cuddly-in-disneys-brother-bear","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/?p=77738","title":{"rendered":"Long before &#039;Joker,&#039; Joaquin Phoenix got downright cuddly in Disney&#039;s &#039;Brother Bear&#039;"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<!-- Quick Adsense WordPress Plugin: http:\/\/quickadsense.com\/ -->\n<div class=\"c5b541d88d911dcbb84397def1a3492d\" data-index=\"1\" style=\"float: none; margin:0px 0 0px 0; text-align:center;\">\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- m -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3943282228430444\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"5751019935\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n<p> [ad_1]\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"id_text\" itemprop=\"articleBody\">\n<p>When Joaquin Phoenix&#8217;s <em>Joker <\/em>won the Golden Lion, the top film award at the 2019 Venice Film Festival, in September, it came as a shock to many. But reviews out of Venice and then TIFF confirmed the hype. Audiences and critics alike were pleasantly surprised, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.indiewire.com\/2019\/09\/joker-tiff-rave-reactions-oscar-buzz-1202172343\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">most seemed to agree<\/a> with the film&#8217;s snag of the Venice prize. Sentiment toward the movie has gotten murkier as its release date approaches, though: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vice.com\/en_us\/article\/ne877m\/joker-is-a-terrifyingly-realistic-window-into-white-terrorism\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">think pieces<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/film\/2019\/sep\/02\/incel-violence-joker-rightwing-film-joaquin-phoenix\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">theories<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/me.mashable.com\/entertainment\/7191\/warner-bros-defends-joker-against-gun-violence-controversy\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">controversy<\/a> surrounding the film and its implications abound.<\/p>\n<p>Nonetheless, Phoenix has been praised for his performance in<em> Joker<\/em>, and the movie seems to be on its way to earning its place amongst the actor&#8217;s other chilling and affecting performances from films like <em>Her, Gladiator, Walk the Line, The Master, <\/em>and even <em>I&#8217;m Still Here.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p>However, one of Phoenix&#8217;s early performances that predates all of the aforementioned titles usually flies under the radar. In Disney&#8217;s animated film <em>Brother Bear <\/em>(2003), Phoenix voiced Kenai, an Inuit boy who kills a bear \u2014 and then becomes one himself.<\/p>\n<div class=\"youtube-wrapper\">\n<p><iframe data-channel=\"B\u00e4renbr\u00fcder\" data-template=\"embedded\" src=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/dqDyf85IHgY\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>The story is profound, but slightly confusing when described in one fell swoop. So, bear with me here (pun absolutely intended): Kenai kills a mama bear as retribution for killing his brother. The mama bear had a cub named Koda. Kenai then endures a <em>Freaky Friday<\/em>-esque transformation into a bear, and while he is a bear, he develops a sibling-like relationship with Koda. For most of the film, Kenai doesn&#8217;t know that the bear he killed was Koda&#8217;s mother, and vice versa. Once Kenai realizes that he killed Koda&#8217;s mother, he tells the cub. Then, Kenai raises Koda as his own, as his younger brother (hence the title).\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- Quick Adsense WordPress Plugin: http:\/\/quickadsense.com\/ -->\n<div class=\"c5b541d88d911dcbb84397def1a3492d\" data-index=\"2\" style=\"float: none; margin:0px 0 0px 0; text-align:center;\">\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- 2 -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3943282228430444\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"5511153269\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>The film&#8217;s whole premise of surrogate-parenthood-by-the-original-parent&#8217;s-murderer is simultaneously an epic departure from Disney&#8217;s other animated movies and (eerily) very characteristic of the sort of high-intensity roles Phoenix is known for mastering. In a way, it makes sense that Phoenix chose <em>Brother Bear <\/em>out of all the Disney movies in which to voice act. The fraught, guilt-filled internal conflict Kenai endures once he realizes that he killed Koda&#8217;s mother is a struggle reminiscent of those faced by Phoenix&#8217;s other multi-faceted, uniquely human characters.<\/p>\n<p>That said, the film is still sweet and heartwarmingly goofy, as Disney films are wont to be. What makes it a contender as one of Disney&#8217;s strongest animated features is how delicately and compassionately it deals with tough topics, such as grief, loss, regret, identity, and forgiveness.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><em>Brother Bear<\/em>&#8216;s narrative emphasizes healing via shared understanding. Kenai is essentially punished for his use of violence against the bear he killed by forming such a deep connection with the cub he single-handedly orphaned. Both Kenai and Koda grieve the loss of their kin and find comfort in each other. Kenai learns that violence isn&#8217;t the answer, and the entire film is a crash course in complex, unconditional empathy toward others.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"mash-embed-card\">\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" allow=\"encrypted-media\" allowtransparency=\"true\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"380\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/track\/1eibUNmtrbMbcbSaSpFv9S\" width=\"300\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>The movie has a knack for including the best parts of Disney animated features, such as a happy-go-lucky original soundtrack by Phil Collins, while steering clear of widely used harmful tropes and gendered stereotypes. For example, there&#8217;s no princess conforming to unrealistic beauty standards in sight. In fact, the movie&#8217;s fantastical take on the idea that &#8220;what&#8217;s on the inside is more important than what&#8217;s on the outside&#8221; indirectly combats the fatal flaws that are so central to many of the Disney films that predate it.<\/p>\n<p>Whether you need another Phoenix flick to lift your spirits after <em>Joker, <\/em>or you&#8217;re forgoing the controversial blockbuster at all costs, <em>Brother Bear <\/em>is certainly worth the watch.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><em>Brother Bear <\/em>is available to rent or buy on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Brother-Bear-Voices\/dp\/B003SHZO4O\/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=brother+bear&amp;qid=1570131341&amp;s=gateway&amp;sr=8-1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Amazon Prime<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/us\/movie\/brother-bear\/id206329413\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">iTunes<\/a>, or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=dqDyf85IHgY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">YouTube<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n<!-- Quick Adsense WordPress Plugin: http:\/\/quickadsense.com\/ -->\n<div class=\"c5b541d88d911dcbb84397def1a3492d\" data-index=\"5\" style=\"float: none; margin:0px 0 0px 0; text-align:center;\">\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- 5 -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3943282228430444\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"9258826580\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n[ad_2]\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/me.mashable.com\/entertainment\/7309\/long-before-joker-joaquin-phoenix-got-downright-cuddly-in-disneys-brother-bear\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n\n<!-- Quick Adsense WordPress Plugin: http:\/\/quickadsense.com\/ -->\n<div class=\"c5b541d88d911dcbb84397def1a3492d\" data-index=\"3\" style=\"float: none; margin:0px 0 0px 0; text-align:center;\">\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- 3 -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3943282228430444\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"2884989920\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n\n<div style=\"font-size: 0px; height: 0px; line-height: 0px; margin: 0; padding: 0; clear: both;\"><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[ad_1] When Joaquin Phoenix&#8217;s Joker won the Golden Lion, the top film award at the 2019 Venice Film Festival, in September, it came as a shock to many. But reviews out of Venice and then TIFF confirmed the hype. Audiences and critics alike were pleasantly surprised, and most seemed to agree with the film&#8217;s snag &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":77739,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[9],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77738"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=77738"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77738\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":77740,"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77738\/revisions\/77740"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/77739"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=77738"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=77738"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=77738"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}