The Bear (1988) coming via Shout Factory on 9/29 (1 Viewer)

Not much response to this announcement so far, so let me say this:


THE BEAR is one of the most gorgeous animal-adventure films ever. It might anthropomorphize a bit, but nothing like what you find in many Disney films. The whimpering of the bear cub in the first part of the film is quite obviously provided by a human voice and can be annoying. But there is enough realism (and harshness) here to make the film an appealing pseudo-documentary, and its depiction of the human/animal relationship is quite striking. The 2.35:1 cinematography of the Canadian mountain forests is immersive and simply beautiful. This was once released by Sony in widescreen, but a later pressing was (inexplicably) 1.33:1. I own a region-free European release of this Blu-ray and consider it among the best-looking discs I own. I can't imagine the Shout! edition will be anything but comparable.

I'll probably bite on this on pay the full pre-order price instead of waiting for a price drop. Love this one.