The plight of the polar bear isn’t something we haven’t heard about. With the ice caps melting and commercial fishing depleting food sources, these beautiful animals are often highlighted and used as the poster child for climate change and the damage we are doing. We’ve all seen that image of starved polar bears floating on one loan chunk of ice. But what isn’t shown, what they actually are going through, the day-to-day struggles and even triumphs in their lives.
Disneynature is trying to change that with their new documentary Polar Bear. It follows the life of a young polar bear as she grows up and becomes a mother herself. It shows how she learns to hunt, the predators she has to encounter – and not all of them in nature, as well as what she has to learn to survive.
Yes, Polar Bear has adorable bear cubs and may be something that kids will automatically want to see from the poster alone. But keep in mind that one thing about nature – it can be brutal and even disgusting at times. Disneynature does a good job of balancing those realities with the cute factor, but there are some moments kids or those with a weak stomach may not want to watch.
Polar Bear is beautifully shot, there is no questioning that. But the pacing of the movie seems a bit slow overall. The sweeping landscapes and the blue-on-white scenery that is present throughout the majority of the film are great for backgrounds but may make it hard for viewers to keep their attention. Add in a low and slow narration – many viewers may struggle with watching this documentary.
Even with all that said, the story and the plight of the Polar Bear is one that needs attention and should be highlighted. Disneynature’s Polar Bear hits Disney+ on Earth Day, April 22nd.
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About Disneynature’s Polar Bear:
Narrated by two-time Academy Award® nominee Catherine Keener (“Capote,” “Being John Malkovich”), Disneynature’s “Polar Bear” tells the story of a new mother whose memories of her own youth prepare her to navigate motherhood in the increasingly challenging world that polar bears face today. Helmed by Alastair Fothergill and Jeff Wilson, the directing team behind Disneynature’s “Penguins,” and produced by Fothergill, Wilson and Roy Conli, “Polar Bear” launches exclusively on Disney+ on April 22, 2022.
