The Bear is an unusually involving story about animals
that will give you a fresh perspective on their world. It is not a documentary
nor is it the kind of cute children's fare usually cranked out by Hollywood.
This strange and affecting film is directed by Frenchman Jean-Jacques Annaud
(Quest for Fire) based on a 1916 novel by James Oliver Curwood set in
British Columbia in 1853.
When a young bear's mother is killed by a rock slide while she
is trying to extract honey from a beehive, he wanders off into the wilderness
whimpering. After several misadventures, the cub finds a protector in a
ferocious grizzly bear who has been shot in the shoulder. The cub licks his
wounds and soon the two are partners. The giant bear introduces the little
vulnerable one to a wider world — catching fish, tracking down and killing a
caribou, and knocking down trees to demonstrate strength in a courtship ritual
with a female bear. The cub must then square off against hunters and a menacing
mountain lion.