Bambi

Composed by Frank Churchill, Larry Morey, and Ed Plumb

01 - Main Title (Love Is a Song) (2:55)
02 - Morning in the Woods / The Young Prince /
       Learning to Walk (5:13)
03 - Exploring / Say Bird / Flower (6:01)
04 - Little April Shower (3:53)
05 - The Meadow / Bambi Sees Faline /
       Bambi Gets Annoyed (4:55)
06 - Gallop of the Stags / The Great Prince of
       the Forest / Man (4:10)
07 - Autumn / The First Snow /

       Fun on the Ice (4:40)
08 - The End of Winter / New Spring Grass /
       Tragedy in the Meadow (2:32)
09 - Wintery Winds (1:09)

10 - Let's Sing a Gay Little Spring Song (1:41)

11 - It Could Even Happen to a Flower (1:59)
12 - Bambi Gets Twitterpated /

       Stag Fight (2:32)
13 - Looking for Romance

       (I Bring You a Song) (2:08)
14 - Man Returns (2:03)
15 - Fire / Reunion / Finale (5:36)
16 - Rain Drops (Demo Recording) (1:37)

BONUS INTERVIEWS
Introduced by Richard Kiley:
17 - Walt Disney (3:18)
18 - Ollie Johnston and Frank Thomas (3:18)
19 - Henry Mancini (3:51)

Total Running Time: 76:41

     When I watched this on DVD the other day, I was struck by the trailer of the “sequel” film that is coming out (apparently, Disney has been struck by a lack of originality in the last decade, especially when you consider that, outside of Pixar, The Emperor’s New Groove is the most original film they’ve done in that timeframe). The new version sports the clean, computer-assisted-animation look, with voices that sound more like child actors than the wholesome realness of those in the original film. There is something inherently captivating about the simplicity of the storyline and the hand-drawn animation.  While not as “clean” as a computer generated look, instead each frame becomes something that is more associated with art than images that are aided by technology. Now, I don’t mean to say that computer generated images should be considered any less of art, as many have proven that captivating art can be achieved in the digital world. Instead the difference would be the same as a letter written by hand or one that is written on a word processor and then printed out. There is just something more special about the hand-written letter, even though the printed one would probably look a whole lot better. It would be nice to see a contemporary animated film return to these roots, but the expense seems too great for any studio to support.

     Bambi is a film that has more dialogue than what you would remember after first viewing. One of the first animated art films, the story was moved along through the delicately handled visuals and the score. Dialogue and sound effects are kept to an absolute minimum (and even Walt Disney said that they felt like there was too much dialogue in the finished film!). However, in the end, both elements that were needed to make Bambi a success melded so well that it has now become a classic of animated cinema. With an elusive, mystical, and yet wholly appropriate score, the music is so endeared to the images that it takes on the famed “Mickey-Mousing” quality that got its name for good reason. But far from being a put-down, thus type of composition is not so readily apparent until the score is heard alongside the visuals. It’s not in the vein of Carl Stalling, instead being of a construction that flows more organically, a result of the passion that undoubtedly went into every aspect of this film. Isolated from the images, the music has enough work going on themes-wise to help present the story, and should be easily followed by anyone who has even the slightest peripheral knowledge of the film.

     Of the themes in Bambi, perhaps none is more effective than the theme for Man. Ominous in its descending tone, the theme only has two appearances, but both are built up to the hilt with tension. Accordingly enough, the other themes mature after the half-way point, as our cast of characters has grown older. The change is subtle and well-handled and adds a new dimension to this fine score. The songs, while representing only a handful of the score’s running time, are well-done and delightful. They work really well on-screen, and the chorus voices have that old-fashioned feel that is both wonderfully nostalgic and timeless. Additionally, the album presents a demo recording of an additional song that did not make it into the final film.

     The sound quality for this remaster is good, but not the best I’ve ever heard. There is some mushiness to the sound on both the highs and lows, but this is expected for a recording that is over 63 years old. The last three tracks on the disc represent a series of interviews with Walt Disney, Ollie Johnson and Frank Thomas, and Henry Mancini. The tracks are cleaned up quite well and sound generally better than the score (though voice-only tracks are very easy to clean up).

     Of disappointment are the liner notes. They are put together extraordinarily well, with beautiful full-color artwork, a complete track listing, and lyrics for each of the songs. However, they fail to include any behind-the-scenes info, notes from anyone associated with the production, or even a good old-fashioned film synopsis. The interviews somewhat make up for the lack of these, but some printed material would have still been nice. As it is, the notes get away with the bare minimum, but at least they do it in style.

     Bambi is a score that, for fans of the film, gets top-notch treatment with this disc. If you have yet to treat yourself to both the movie and the score, do yourself a favor and make both happen.