Date Released: 07/26/2002
Rated: G
Length: 85 minutes
Produced by: Andrew Gunn, Jeffrey Chernov
Directed by: Peter Hastings
Cast: Haley Joel Osment, Christopher Walken, Diedrick Bader, Elizabeth Daily, Brad Garrett, Daryll Mitchell, Elton John, Queen Latifah, Meagan Fay, Candy Ford
Distributor: Buena Vista Pictures (Walt Disney)
Before anyone can label me as an insensitive movie reviewer not partial to clean-cut children's fare, I will go on record as saying that it's a relief to see innocuous G-rated movies geared toward the tykes. However, when these same type of films are insipid in nature and offer no imagination or challenging forethought to its youthful audience then I turn a poison pen to fruitless fluff like "The Country Bears". Personally, I'm a Banana Splits fan myself (why couldn't my quartet of musical childhood furballs get their own movie instead of these vapid, vocalizing Smokey-the-Bear rejects?).
With a plotline that's as lumpy as two-day old porridge, "The Country Bears" involves the cutesy storyline of Beary Barrington (Haley Joel Osment, "AI: Artificial Intelligence", "The Sixth Sense"), a ten-year-old cub adopted by a human family. Beary comes to the realization that he's not of his "family's ilk" after his envious brother shatters his reality that he's not like the rest of the group. And so poor Beary sets out on an adventure in an effort to look where he belongs.
It's not long before Beary wanders into the venue of Country Bear Hall in Tennessee. There, he meets the acquaintance of the defunct musical group the Country Bears, a collection of fuzzy characters that were a successful rockin' band from the seventies. Beary is pleased to see that the musicians are of his same kind and becomes instrumental in convincing the former band members to reunite. As it turns out, the Country Bears' following has never dwindled and their songs are still referred to quite favorably.
Other than the Country Bears getting together for nostalgic reasons, there's a more pressing urgency for them to start singing together again--they need to save the Country Bear Hall from the heartless banker Reed Thimple (Christopher Walken) who wants to forclose on the place desperately.
There are some elements that prevent "The Country Bears" from being a total nonsensical drag. Some of the music featured in the movie are worth tapping your toes to so audiences (mainly the kids) will be jamming with noteworthy approval. And it didn't hurt that the script called for stuffing an array of who's who in the music business to take part in this sacchrine-coated family fantasy; everyone from Elton John to Willie Nelson get to take part in this juvenile jamboree. And the obvious message about unity and wanting to belong in order to get a sense of one's self has that redeeming reassurance that the little ones will pick up as a moral message. But despite this notion, "The Country Bears" come off as a lame piece of entertainment that fails to register its silly-minded jokes and some of the long-winded song and dance numbers.
For the youngsters, having them see these bears doing entertaining things such as talking, singing and dancing will probably be considered somewhat intriguing. But for the adults, this experience most likely would be a surreal waste of time unless they get a kick out of seeing the string of cameos meant to hold their fragile interests. Osment voices the impressionable Beary Barrington with a decent amount of flair and energy. Walken, who's masterful when playing demented icons on the big screen, is transparent as the blustery banker meant to rain on everybody's parade.
"The Country Bears" hopefully will inspire the kiddies to visit the amusement ride from which they emerged from. Believe me, this tyke-tested tripe will take us all on an uneventful ride of some sort. The filmmakers' paws, sad to say, were all over this "un-bear-able" project!
Frank rates this film: * 1/2 stars (out of 4 stars)