neumu [ cinematronic ]




	The Country Bears
	Peter Hastings Christopher Walken, Haley Joel Osment, Stephen Tobolowsky, Daryl "Chill" Mitchell, M.C. Gainey, Diedrich Bader, Alex Rocco, Meagen Fay, Eli Marienthal 2002		Hard to bear ... for anyone other than a kid. Disney, never known for restraint when it comes to protecting its brand or its trademarked personalities, has come up with the first live-action feature based on one of its amusement park attractions — the annoying, audio-animatronic Country Bear Jamboree. ("The Haunted Mansion" and "Pirates of the Caribbean" are next. Can "Space Mountain: The Movie" be far behind?) This is basically "The Blues Brothers" with a roots-rock bent and mimes in bear drag. A young cub (voice of Haley Joel Osment) leaves his human family and hits the road to reunite the once-popular Country Bears band for a benefit. With the exception of a typically deranged role for Christopher Walken, a few cameos (Queen Latifah, Brian Setzer, Elton John, Bonnie Raitt, Willie Nelson, etc.) and decent original songs from singer/composer John Hiatt, this has all the depth and creativity of between-inning shtick by a fake-furred team mascot. The bear costumes are more believable than Barney. Barely.