Disney's Bambi 00I

***Bambi*** is a 1942 Disney film based on the book *Bambi: A Life in the Woods* by Felix Salten. It is the fifth film released by Walt Disney Animation Studios and was released on August 13, 1942. In 2006, it received a midquel in the form of *Bambi II*.

## Synopsis

In the great forest, a fawn named Bambi is born. He learns about the joys and the heartaches of life all while growing into a strong young stag. As an adult, he finds love, but his romance and his life is threatened by Man's visit to the forest and the following forest fire.

## Plot

All the animals of the forest are waking up save Friend Owl, who is just returning to the tree he live in, presumably after a long night of hunting, and plans to get some sleep. Suddenly, the birds begin singing loudly, spreading some important. A young rabbit named Thumper and his sisters excitedly awake Friend Owl and explain to him that the a new prince has been. The animals of the forest convene at a den, where they see a doe with her Bambi lying by her side. The animals congratulate her, and the fawn awakes. He is at first frightened by Friend Owl but quickly warms up to him. He then attempts to stand on his own but struggles to maintain his balance. Thumper innocently points out his wobbliness and is scolded by his mother for it. Tired, the fawn lies down and yawns, an action which Friend Owl interprets as a sign for him and the other animals to leave the fawn and his mother in peace. They all leave, except for Thumper, who asks the fawn's mother what her newborn son's name will be. She replies that she will name him "Bambi." Thumper agrees to the name and runs off to join us family. The happy doe snuggles her fawn as a large stag watches from a nearby peak. **Not long later, Bambi and his mother walk through the forest, where Bambi falls after trying to catch up with his mother. Thumper and his family arrive and check on Bambi, who recovers quickly from his fall. Bambi, Thumper, and Thumper's sisters then run through the forest playfully. They eventually come across several birds eating some berries. Thumper then teaches Bambi how to say the word "bird". Though he struggles at first, Bambi eventually learns the word. Happy with his success, Thumper and his sisters run off to tell Bambi's mother and their mother what the young prince's first word was. Meanwhile, Bambi chases a butterfly, believing it to be a bird. Thumper returns to Bambi and explains to him that the "bird" he was chasing was a butterfly. Bambi then childishly assumes that a large yellow flower is also a butterfly, prompting Thumper to teach him the word "flower". While Bambi is sniffing the flowers, a young skunk pops out of the flower patch. Bambi automatically assumes that he is a flower as well, which leaves Thumper rolling over his backside with laughter. The skunk, however, says that he's fine with being called a flower, which makes the baby fawn very happy.** As the day of playing and learning comes to an end, thunder is heard. Thumper leaves Bambi to return home, while Bambi heads to his den as well. Just as he is falling asleep, Bambi is awakened by the noise of raindrops falling on and around him. The rain initially falls slowly, but it slowly starts raining faster. Soon, the whole forest is alive as the rain falls everywhere and the creatures run for shelter. Suddenly, the the storm becomes violent as bright flashes of lightning are seen and the roar of thunder is heard, frightening Bambi. Eventually, the storm departs, and the sun rises as Bambi, now asleep by his mother's side, snuggles with his mother and the last bits of rain fall off the leaves and into a puddle. **Sometime later, when Bambi is more capable of conversation, his mother takes him to the meadow and warns him of its danger when he tries to recklessly run out onto it. She tells him to stay behind a thicket while she looks around to see if it is safe. After a few seconds of silently scouting the meadow, Bambi's mother determines that it is safe and calls to her son to join her. The two run and play together in the meadow. After a while, Bambi spots Thumper and his family and leaves his mother to join them. Thumper teaches Bambi about clover. When Bambi tries to eat some of the clover, he is greeted by a bullfrog. Curious, Bambi follows the frog over to a small pool of water, which the frog jumps in. Bambi stares into the water and at his never before seen reflection. Suddenly, the reflection of another fawn appears in the water beside him. He looks up at the source of the reflection, a female fawn, and is frightened by it. He runs back to his mother for protection. His mother introduces him to the other fawn, whose name is Faline, and encourages him to say hello to her. He reluctantly does so, and Faline breaks out in giggles and becomes hyperactive. The two engage in a game of tag.** As their game concludes, Bambi and Faline see a herd of young bucks running and fighting. Faline runs away in fear, but Bambi remains, filled with excitement as he watches the bucks bound across the field. He even tries to run alongside them but is too slow and is almost trampled. Suddenly, the bucks stop running and stand still in reverence to a large, majestic stag approaching them. The stag briefly looks at Bambi without saying a word to him, and then continues with his regal march through the meadow. Bambi asks his mother why all of the deer stood still when the mysterious stag walked by, and she explains that the stag is in fact the oldest and wisest deer in the forest, the Great Prince of the Forest. **The Great Prince leaves the meadow and wanders into the forest. Suddenly, the silence of the woods is broken when a flock of crows fly past and loudly warn of impending danger. The Great Prince runs back towards the meadow and warns the herd. All of the animals on the meadow scramble to leave the open field and make it back to the safety of the trees. In the chaos, Bambi is separated from his mother and begins searching for her desperately. His mother likewise looks for him. The Great Prince approaches Bambi and quietly and quickly escorts both him and his mother to safety. As the three flee into the woods, a loud gunshot is heard. The Great Prince vanishes into the forest. Bambi and his mother are left alone, and she explains to him that the great danger from which they were fleeing was Man.** During the winter, an adolescent Bambi discovers snow. While exploring the wintry wonderland that the forest has become, he sees Thumper sliding on ice. Thumper teaches him how to slide on ice. Bambi is a bit clumsy, and he and Thumper crash into the snow, where they hear the snores of their friend Flower, who is hibernating for the winter. For the rest of winter, Bambi and his mother struggle to find food. They strip bark off of trees just to survive, but Bambi is still left hungry. **As winter begins to end, Bambi's mother finds a patch of grass. She and Bambi begin eating from it, but as they do, she senses that Man is near and orders Bambi to flee. As Bambi runs away, he hears many gunshots. He arrives at the den safely but realizes that his mother is not with him. He wanders off in the forest calling for her. The Great Prince suddenly appears in front of him and informs him that his mother has died. He then leads him away and reveals himself to be Bambi's father.** Sometime later, Bambi is now a young stag, and he reunites with Friend Owl, Thumper, and Flower. As it is spring, many of the animals around them are finding mates. Friend Owl discourages Bambi and his friends from ever becoming "twitterpated", and they agree to never fall in love. However, Thumper and Flower struggle to keep this promise, quickly falling in love with a young female rabbit and a young female skunk, respectively. Bambi is at first disgusted with seeing his friends "twitterpated", but this changes as he reunites with a now-grown Faline. The two quickly begin flirting with each other as they happily dance through the woods. Their flirty romp through the ends when an older buck appears and tries to violently force Faline away from Bambi. Bambi attacks the buck. Bambi initially struggles in his fight against the older buck, but he eventually gaines the upper hand and pushes him off a cliff and into a river below. Afterwards, Bambi and Faline continue their tryst through the forest. **That night, Bambi is awoken by the smell of smoke. His father, the Great Prince, explains that Man has returned to the forest, that there are many others with Man, and they must flee even deeper into the forest. Bambi tries to find Faline, but she is being chased by Man's hunting dogs. As soon as he finds her, he bravely Bambi attacks the dogs, allowing Faline to escape. Many of the dogs are killed or injured in a rock slide caused by Bambi. He flees the scene as fast he can but is shot as he leaps over a ravine. As he lies there, a fire caused by Man's carelessness begins to spread. The Great Prince finds him and urges him to get back on his feet despite his injury. Together, they escape the forest fire and go to a small island in a lake where the other animals, including Faline, have taken refuge.** Later, the forest has recovered from the fire. Thumper and Flower, now fathers, Friend Owl, and many other animals visit a den as word spreads through the forest that a new prince has been born. In the den is Faline, who has recently given birth to twin fawns, Geno and Gurri. As all the animals congratulate Faline on her new arrivals, Bambi is standing on a nearby cliff, watching the scene. His father is standing beside him. The Great Prince looks at him briefly and then silently turns away and leaves. Bambi steps up and takes his father's place, signifying that he is the new Great Prince of the Forest.

## Continuity

* *Bambi* shares many similarities and differences with the novel on which it is based, *Bambi: A Life in the Woods*. Among some of the similarities and differences are the following:
	+ In the novel, Bambi's birth and the following moments are a quiet scene, with only one loud magpie intruding on Bambi's mother's privacy. In the film, a large gathering of animals, including Thumper and Friend Owl, visits Bambi moments after his birth. The two may not contradict each other in-universe, as the scene in the film may simply a little bit after the scene in the novel.
	+ Many of the film's supporting characters such as Thumper, Flower, Friend Owl, Thumper's sisters, and Mama Bunny were created for the film and did not appear in the novel, which had similar characters such as Friend Hare and Screech Owl.
	+ In the novel, Bambi first learns of the existence of other deer in the forest from his mother. In the film, he tells his mother that Thumper already informed him about the existence of other deer. In both the film and the novel, this conversation about deer happens as Bambi is being taken to the meadow for the first time.
	+ Bambi's first meeting with Faline is slightly different between the two versions, though there are basic similarities. In the novel, Bambi meets both Faline *and* her twin brother Gobo one night at the meadow. In the film, he only meets Faline with Gobo nowhere in sight, and the meeting occurs during the day. Also, the novel portrays Faline and Gobo as being shy around Bambi at first, whereas Faline in the film is very exuberant about meeting Bambi and doesn't show a sign of shyness.
	+ The portrayal of the "Old Stag" is noticeably different in the film than in the film. Most notably, the Old Stag of the novel is portrayed as a very mysterious figure who appears sporadically to the other animals, sometimes disappearing for years before being seen again. The Old Stag of the film, who is never referred to as "the Old Stag" during the film and instead goes by "the Great Prince of the Forest", is much less mysterious, with one scene showing him marching proudly in front of the young bucks.
	+ The antagonist of the novel is referred to as "He", while the film's antagonist is known as "Man."
	+ The circumstances surrounding Bambi's mother's death vary greatly between the novel and the film. In the novel, she is one of many animals to die during a hunting trip by He. That hunting trip creates pandemonium throughout the forest, and Bambi's mother dies in the chaos. Afterwards, Nettla helps care for Bambi. In the film, Bambi's mother dies when she and Bambi are eating grass and are spotted by Man. Bambi is then taken in by his father, the Great Prince of the Forest.

## Appearances

* Bambi (voiced by Bobby Stewart, Donnie Dunagan, Hardie Albright, and John Sutherland)
* Thumper (voiced by Peter Behn, Tim Davis, and Sam Edwards)
* Bambi's mother (voiced by Paula Winslowe)
* Flower (voiced by Tim Davis, Stan Alexander, and Sterling Holloway)
* Friend Owl (voiced by Will Wright)
* Faline (voiced by Cammie King and Ann Gillis)
* The Great Prince of the Forest (voiced by Fred Shields)
* Man
* Mrs. Hare (voiced by Margaret Lee)
* Ena (voiced by Mary Lansing)
* Mrs. Possum (voiced by Mary Lansing)
* Possums
* Mr. Mole (voiced by Otis Harlan)
* Pheasant (voiced by Paula Winslowe)
* Bullfrog (voiced by Clarence Nash)
* Hunting Dogs (voiced by Clarence Nash)
* Thumper's mate (voiced by Thelma Boardman)
* Mrs. Quail (voiced by Thelma Boardman)
* Tree Squirrel (voiced by Stuart Erwin)
* Birds (voiced by Marion Darlington)
* Chipmunk
* Ronno (name not mentioned; no dialogue)
* Bluebelle (name not mentioned; no dialogue)
* Geno (name not mentioned; no dialogue)
* Gurri (name not mentioned; no dialogue)
* Thumper's sisters
* Thumper's Daughters
* Bambi The Skunk

## Songs

* *Love is a Song*
* *Little April Shower*
* *Let's Sing a Gay Little Spring Song*
* *Looking For Romance*
* *Raindrops* (deleted)

## Behind the scenes

*Bambi* was first released in August 1942. It was the first official animated adaptation of Felix Salten's 1922 novel, *Bambi: A Life in the Woods*. It was Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer producer Sidney Franklin who first purchased the rights to make a film out of *Bambi: A Life in the Woods* in 1933. He intended to make a live-action film based on the novel but decided that his goal was too hard to achieve. He sold the rights to Walt Disney in 1935 and encouraged him to make an animated film based on the novel. **Production on *Bambi* began about three years after the rights to it were purchased in 1938. Around this same time, Disney hired artist Maurice "Jake" Day from Maine, who had only recently moved to California, the home of Walt Disney Studios. At this early stage in production, Disney planned to instruct his animators to depict the character of Bambi as a mule deer, as that species of deer was common in California. Day disagreed and recommended that Bambi instead be a white-tailed deer residing in a forest of Maine. To prove that his idea was better, he was tasked to go to back to his home state of Maine and make photographs and sketches of a Maine forest and the creatures in it to prove his point to Disney. He ultimately took five hundred black-and-white and five hundred color photos in Maine, -- in the Katahdin region, to be specific -- thus inspiring the backgrounds of *Bambi* and convincing Disney to make Bambi a white-tailed deer.** Day also arranged for two white-tailed fawns to be sent from Maine to California. These fawns served as the real-life models for Bambi and his love interest, Faline, with the animators studying them intently over the course of nine months. During this time, the fawns grew into young adults. Though the Bambi and Faline were explicitly modeled after white-tailed deer, it has been noted that Bambi still bears a resemblance to a mule deer in the film, perhaps reflecting the majority of animators' familiarity with mule deer as opposed to white-tailed deer.

### Crew

According to the film's own opening credits, its supervising director was David Hand. James Algar, Bill Roberts, Norman Wright, Sam Armstrong, Paul Satterfield, and Graham Heid served as sequence directors. The writing of the story for the film, based on Salten's original story, was handled by story director Perce Pearce, story adapter Larry Morey, and story developers George Stallings, Melvin Shaw, Carl Fallberg, Chuck Couch, and Ralph Wright. Among those involved in the actual animation and art direction of the film were Thomas H. Codrick, Robert C. Cormack, Al Zinnen, McLarsen Stewart, Lloyd Harting, David Hilberman, John Hubley, Dick Kelsey, Merle T. Cox, Tyrus Wong, W. Richard Anthony, Art Riley, Stan Spohn, Robert McIntosh, Ray Huffine, Travis Johnson, Ed Levitt, Joe Stahley, Franklin Thomas, Milt Kahl, Eric Larson, Ollie Johnston, Fraser Davis, Preston Blair, Bill Justice, John Bradbury, Don Lusk, Bernard Garbutt, Retta Scott, Joshua Meador, Ken Hultgren, Phil Duncan, Kenneth O'Brien, George Rowley, Louis Schmitt, Art Palmer, and Art Elliott. **The film's music was scored by Frank Churchill and Edward Plumb. Alexander Steinert was the conductor of the orchestra playing Churchill's and Plumb's pieces for the film. Charles Wolcott and Paul J. Smith are credited with directing the orchestration, while Charles Henderson created the score's choral arrangements.**

### Sequels and Spin-offs

In 2006, the Walt Disney Company released *Bambi II*, the animated follow-up to the 1942 film. It did not follow the same plot as Felix Salten's *Bambi's Children*, the novel he wrote to serve as the sequel to the *Bambi: A Life in the Woods* book that 1942's *Bambi* was based on. Instead, it largely charted its own course, serving as a midquel to the original film and covering events transpiring after the death of Bambi's mother but before Bambi first mated with Faline. **In 2020, it was announced that Disney would produce yet another animated Bambi film. The film is likely to draw heavy inspiration from the 1942 film as opposed to Salten's novel, though this cannot be known for certain as of yet.**