The Bear
Short description
Set in the wilderness of British Columbia in 1885, The Bear follows a young cub left alone after his mother dies in a fall while searching for honey. He soon crosses paths with a large adult Kodiak bear wounded by hunters, and the two gradually form a bond as the cub learns to survive. Their main threat comes not from nature but from two hunters who track them persistently; one in particular becomes determined to bring down the big bear. The story is told largely from the animals' perspective.
The film was directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud, his third feature after Quest for Fire (1981) and The Name of the Rose (1986), written by Gérard Brach and produced by Claude Berri. Tchéky Karyo plays Tom and Jack Wallace plays Bill, with Bart The Bear, Youk the Bear and Bozo the Bear appearing as the animals. Made for about 25 million US dollars, the film took roughly 138 million dollars worldwide, a strong return. On IMDb it holds 7.7/10 from 18,810 votes, and on TMDB 7.1/10 from 540 votes, suggesting a well-regarded family adventure whose reputation has held up.
What's left behind the scenes
- P.I. Tchaikovsky's "June. Barcarolle" plays during the end credits.
- Instead of actual bear sounds, sounds made by monkeys and children were frequently used.
- Once, during a photo shoot, a bear named Bart injured director Jean-Jacques Annaud. The claw marks on Annaud's back bled for two months.
- The episode featuring the hunter and the adult bear, in which the animal turns away from the man and simply walks away, is based on an event that happened to James Oliver Curwood, the author of the original novel (1916) and the film's screenwriter. An avid hunter, he once accidentally found himself without a gun just as a bear encountered him. For reasons known only to him, Curwood's bear did not attack. This incident left such an impression on Curwood that he gave up hunting entirely and instead began to advocate for the protection of nature.
- Preparation for filming took 6 years, while the actual filming period lasted only 8 months.
- A contract was signed with Jim Henson's Creature Shop (an animation and special effects studio) to create five animatronic bears to replace the real animals and avoid accusations of animal cruelty. The animatronic animals were created in a very short time based on photographs of real bears. However, when they arrived for filming in the Dolomites in northeastern Italy, it became clear that the animatronic bears could not pass for real ones. Consequently, their screen time was limited to a few seconds.
- Three trainers (including owner Doug Seuss) worked with Bart the bear; another eleven worked with the cubs, three with the dogs, and three with the horses.
- In reality, hungry adult bears can eat cubs. To prevent this from happening, the filmmakers accustomed Bart to the presence of a cub using a toy bear of corresponding size and color. Only after the trainers were convinced that Bart was used to the toy did they introduce him to Yuk.
- The film is based on James Oliver Curwood's novel "The Grizzly King: A Romance of the Wild" (1918).
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
