Bambi: The Reckoning

Granted, I had absolutely zero expectations to this 2025 horror movie, solely because of the movie's title. I mean, the recent years string of turning children's books into horror stories haven't exactly been stellar movies. But still, I opted to watch "Bambi: The Reckoning" solely because it was a horror movie that I hadn't already seen. And thus is the curse of being a fan of all things horror.

Writers Felix Salten and Rhys Warrington put together a rather straightforward script and storyline. It actually wasn't as bad as you might expect from a movie with a title such as "Bambi: The Reckoning". Just don't expect anything award-winning here, and you're good to go.

Of the entire cast ensemble in the movie, I was only familiar with Nicola Wright. Yeah, I've seen more than my share of low budget and questionable movies to be familiar with her. The acting performances in the movie were fair.

The effects in the movie were fair, not great, but fair enough for what they were. The design of Bambi was certainly interesting enough and added something to the movie. But some of the CGI animated scenes looked a bit questionable at times.

"Bambi: The Reckoning" was actually a watchable movie, if you don't sit down with a bunch of expectations to the movie. Not a phenomenally great movie, mind you, but watchable for the campy stuff that it was. Watchable, yes, but hardly a movie that warrants more than a single viewing. Nor is it a movie that I would recommend horror fans to rush out and get to watch.

My rating of director Dan Allen's 2025 movie "Bambi: The Reckoning" lands on a four out of ten stars.

Didn;t mind this at all.

Some nice effects and gore. Some obvious CGI miss-steps - but that's to be expected.

BUT - PLEASE stop with the evil, corrupt and stupid men. Stop with the strong females who can do nothing wrong and are bullet proof. It's just fatigue at this point. How about showing men and women working together as a concept?

This movie knows what it is, and makes the most out it. It's fun, and entertaining. One of those movies you enjoy watching with a group of friends after a party.

This movie doesn't pretend to be artsy in the name of film making unlike most of A24 horror movies these days. The actors are surprisingly good except for few, most of whom die pretty early on anyway. While the CGI is nothing amazing, compared to some of the rushed Marvel projects, it certainly is comparable.

Bambi: The Reckoning had a few decent moments, but overall it fell flat due to a lack of depth and emotional connection. The story felt underdeveloped, with barely any world-building or explanation around the who, where, or why of what was happening. None of the characters were particularly likable or compelling.

Even the kid, who should have been a sympathetic figure, just came across as kind of a blank slate. The mom made questionable choices, especially in how she handled the broken relationship between the father and son, and that dynamic was never explored in a meaningful way. The film seemed to rely on shock or sentimentality in the final act, but it didn't earn that emotional payoff.

The ending felt heavy-handed for a movie that hadn't taken the time to make you care about anyone. I usually enjoy these B-movie horror spins on fairy tales or childhood IPs, but this one just didn't land. It lacked heart, clarity, and ultimately any real reason to get invested.

A concept so ridiculous the only choice it had was to look itself in the mirror and recognize what it is, Instead it fools itself and to believing it could be a grand demonstration of its genre. But with a Weak opening, weak progression, weak execution, weak characters, weak plot, weak kills, and a weak climax, and with how serious it takes itself, This movie couldn't even hope to be middle of the road. But at least it is a well-rounded waste of everyone's time.