We're Going on a Bear Hunt (2016) Reviews

• Who goes bear

  Prismark102016-12-25

  Michael Rosen's 1989 tale, We're Going on a Bear Hunt has delighted toddlers for years. A tale I read to my own children when they were young. Four children go for a ramble singing a song about hunting a bear, they are going to catch a big one. Of course Rosen has expressed the words in a way to develop their language skills as they decide if they can go over it, under it or just go through it. The story was wonderfully illustrated by Helen Oxenbury and now it has been turned into a 30 minutes animated cartoon by Channel 4. However what should be a 10 minutes cartoon has now been reimagined for the longer running time. It left my son rather confused as he saw bits that he never recalled being in the book. The cartoon ends up being rather melancholy as it turns to the concept of loss and grief, the children's grandpa having recently died. It also turns to loneliness as the bear is alone and without a friend as he wanders back into his cave. Maybe small kids could end up being less than enchanted over Christmas due to a misjudged ending. The animation was very good, a lot of detail here and there and of course there is plenty of snow being made by the same company that made The Snowman and the Snowdog.

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• Deeper story

  acitra12018-08-26

  A great adaptation that added deep layers to a simple story.

• Beautiful, Deep, Sad, Real

  jesusfreaktechie2019-01-22

  The music in this film is lovely, the animation is beautiful, the theme is deep and real. For anyone who has ever dealt with loss, this film resonates in a beautiful way. My three year old asks to watch this with me over and over, and loves it.

• The tradition continues in style

  Horst_In_Translation2017-02-20

  "We're Going on a Bear Hunt" is a 24-minute animated short film from Great Britain and this one came out for the 2016 holidays, so it is still relatively fresh. It is a bit of a tradition that there is at least one new animated short film from the UK each year that runs for half an hour and is released during the days of Christmas and here we have the most recent installment to that tradition. The director and one of the writers is Joanna Harrison, a longtime animator who has worked on several well-received animated film since the 1970s and was also the person mostly in charge of the recent "The Snowman and the Snowdog". Looking at the subject of bears, it is a bit of a return to the roots for her. You will find the details if you take a look at her body of work. Anyway, the perfect adjective to not describe this film here is "spectacular". The animation is easy to identify with the character design and landscapes looking very similar to the Snowman short films and this is Harrison's approach to her genre. I like it. It very subtle and chilly and takes tension out of dramatic moments (like the bear running wildly after the humans), which makes it a very acceptable watch for kids also. Yes in terms of the story, it is true that nothing happens almost, but it does not take away from the film's appeal. The comedy is delivered through the heart and cuteness and I like this approach as well. All in all, a fairly decent watch for people from all age groups I believe. This could also have been named "The Bear Hug".

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• A nice enough way to spend half an hour

  TheLittleSongbird2017-01-04

  Michael Rosen's 'We're Going on a Bear Hunt' was a family and school favourite for years. To this day it still holds up as a timeless and immensely charming piece of literature, with wonderful illustrations, that the whole family can enjoy. It is also one of those rare cases where repetition is not a bad thing. In 2016, 'We're Going on a Bear Hunt' was adapted as a 30-minute animation, shown over the Christmas holidays. Despite the initial scepticism as to whether a great, but admittedly slight, story like 'We're Going on a Bear Hunt' would work this way, it turned out to be better than expected and passes the time nicely. Not a great adaptation as such, but stands more than serviceably on its own two feet. With that being said, it is easy to see why anybody who grew up with 'We're Going on a Bear Hunt' would be disappointed. 'We're Going on a Bear Hunt' (2016) from personal opinion would have worked better as 10-15 minute short film. While there are bits that are recognisable and a good enough job is done making the most out of the lovely if repetitive text, some parts did feel like padding, that didn't always add to or enhance the storytelling as it could have done, stretched to fill a somewhat too long running time. Can also definitely understand any criticisms regarding the darker and more melancholic ending. Thought it was rather moving myself, but at the same time it did feel at odds with the rest of the story tonally, which in comparison was lighter, more gentle and more upbeat. However, there is no denying that 'We're Going on a Bear Hunt' is very well made and beautifully animated, the level of detail and how gorgeously it was all drawn was staggering. The music is also a perfect fit, with an appropriate understated whimsy and lushness. Execution of the story is not perfect, but there is still plenty of charm in the telling of it and there is always more than enough to keep the whole family's attention. As well as plenty to please both children and adults, neither ever too complicated or too simple, with enough moments to laugh, cry and aw over. Furthermore, the characters carry 'We're Going on a Bear Hunt' well and are endearing and the voice acting is very good all round. While Pam Ferris and Mark Williams are the most famous names, it was really interesting and an added bonus to have Rosen himself voicing the bear, and very well too. Overall, a half an hour well spent but could have been shorter. 7/10 Bethany Cox

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