I've watched this probably 10 times with my daughter, and every time I notice some piece of the plot that takes me deeper into understanding this story. It really is brilliant, a warning about the dangers of arrogance, of balancing the good of the individual and the good of the whole community. I never really "got" the mother's perspective until the last couple times I watched it - I just thought of her as trying to hold her daughter down, but she has her own good motivations rooted in a deep understanding of her culture's legends.

A couple critiques: Merida's central struggle with her mother is about choosing a man to marry. I look forward to the time when four-year-old girls don't have to think about their relationship to romantic love. There are plenty of other mechanisms that could have suited this purpose (choosing a role in the community, for example). The Moana storyline handled this extremely well.

Finally, there are no models for positive masculinity in this movie, which is a shame. A feminine hero doesn't require the context of clumsy masculinity. This is harmful to our current masculine culture, which can use all the help it can get. I feel bad for the boys who watch this movie, and I hope for something more balanced in the future.

I didn't think any Disney princess could be worse than Ariel (The Little Mermaid) in terms of selfishness and egocentricity but Disney just proved me wrong! At least Ariel only set out to change herself. Meridia on the other hand...wow. There is just no excuse for her actions. She could have done ANYTHING else, up to and including just running away but no, she decides to literally alter another person. She may have intended to have the mind altered instead of the body but that is so much worse considering she intentional chose to do so to someone that genuinely loved her is evil! Which almost got everyone killed! Meridia is the villain of this movie no matter how much they tried to make it the bear who fell into the same trap by asking for something FAR less cruel. And Disney just brushed all of that under the rug and said, "See! Everyone changed for the better and lived happily ever after."

If there’s a better CGI original tale that’s been released, I have yet to see it. This is a wonderful story, well produced and acted. It is Shakespearean in its amusing look at the parenting segment of the Human Condition, and will be every family’s list of Good Ones for times to come.

Technically, the sound and visuals are lush, and natural; Scotland couldn’t have asked for a better tourism advertisement. The characters are original, well drawn, entertaining—and somehow familiar. They seem like people we all have run across at one time or another.

The best part is the story itself, but I won’t be a spoiler here. The film should be in every family’s collection, and a must for the Disney aficionadi everywhere! Wish I could give it 6 stars!

Our granddaughter had chosen the song “Touch the Sky” for a choir audition, which aroused my interest in the movie, which I had never seen. What I checked out from the library was this edition, so when my daughter and I decided this was what Grace would like for a birthday present, this was an easy choice. That was in March. A few days ago, on Mother’s Day, as a follow-up to a long phone conversation, my daughter wrote:
“Meant to say again just how much Grace—and all of us—are enjoying the Brave movie and bonus features! The girls watched it again last night (I’ve lost count of how many times they’ve watched it since March!) and are begging for bonus features after dinner. They especially like ‘Brave Old World’ (like a free trip to Scotland!) and ‘Dirty, Hairy People.’ And Fionn and I were fascinated and blown away by the CG details in the ones on the moss and the tapestry! Thank you so much again!!”

Hello ladies of the wild heart who still have some lessons to learn about family, love, duty and honor....this is great for guys and gals....though it does play down the romantic part and makes the boys a bit over the top in the bravado area (looking silly) but it's poignant to show a fathers love vs. his attachment to roles he plays in community. A bit scary for the tots with a small section facing off against a bear....so....I'd say keep it away from kids who scare easily until they are at the tender age of 8....otherwise this is great for any age upwards (or kids numb to scary drooling fierce wild animals ready to tear your heart out...but don't).

If you enjoy Pixar movies, like How To Train Your Dragon. Then you’ll love this. It’s obviously been out for awhile but for people who haven’t seen it, it’s a must. Culture, love, family and adventure.

For younger kids there might be some "scary moments" but nothing to worry about.

I have wanted to see this show for a long time and I finally got to watch it. While it was very nice, it did become a little bit silly with the whole mom-turning-into-a bear-thing. I know it's for children, so I let that slide. I just was not expecting the plot to be about a mother/daughter bond. I really was expecting something completely different. It seemed a bit heavy to me.. I don't know why Disney is taking it upon themselves to address issues such as mother-daughter bonds, et cetera. When I was growing up, Disney stories were light-hearted and fun, fairy tales. Now they seem like they're taking on all these heavy family matters, and SOCIAL issues, which is not as much fun. I miss Disney movies as they were, back in the day.

This movie had the potential to be such an amazing movie. Instead it turned inappropriate very quickly. The maiden with her breasts hanging out of her dress throughout the whole movie with emphasis placed on them was deplorable. Even gestures from the little boys to each other after they were turned into bear cubs and jumped into her breasts was inappropriate! And then there was men with their bare butts shown. What is going on with Disney? This is NOT a movie for children. Morals and values have gone down the tubes when these kind of scenes become the norm and we let our children watch movies with such poor influence. There is far too much trash in this world to begin with that our children are subjected to than to add it into children's movies. I was excited to sit down and watch this with my kids and then afterwards, I was disgusted and highly disappointed. What happened to the family oriented movies? What happened to family values? Is this what we are left with? What a shame! Again, this movie had the potential to be an amazing movie but instead it became a huge disappointment. " Be careful little eyes what you see....." Bring back family values in childrens movies. Make it enjoyable again.