Released just one year after Disney's 1941 dynamo, Dumbo, Bambi was a deer of an entirely different color. Bambi was as naturalistic as Dumbo was stylized. Dumbo has the frenzied pace of the circus-ring, but Bambi boasts a hauntingly lyrical rhythm and whereas Dumbo's triumph over adversity is lightly handled, a similar moral in Bambi is heavily underlined.
Although the animals of Bambi were modeled on life studies, they were sufficiently 'Disneyfied' to make them appear seemingly uncomfortable residents in the film's evocative forest settings. The stock cartoon gags utilized from time to time are intrusive and the animal's childish voices, endearing as they may be, proved how right the studio had been to keep Dumbo, frankly - dumb.
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| Hello deer, which way to the stag party? |
There are nevertheless, moments of animation in Bambi which remain unsurpassed; in particular the battle of the stags was impressively shot in dramatic browns and purples and the terrifyingly vivid forest-fire sequence. However, the American audiences of 1942, were at the time fighting the war they had once hoped would pass them by, found little in the sequestered glades of Bambi's woods with which to identify.
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| A if for Atmosphere |
The studio at this point had turned into a veritable assembly line employing a large staff of highly talented and qualified designers and technical staff to whom Disney permitted precious little artistic freedom. Among the major artists who worked for him were several who were later to become celebrated animators, each in their own right. It came as quite a shock to Disney when during the summer of 1941, recurrent labor disputes were now coming to a head, consequently the studio had been shut down for over two months. The staff grievances not only involved wages and hours of work but also the lack of recognition given to the senior artists. Disney was sent on a goodwill tour of South America will the strike was eventually settled.