Baloo is a character who appears in the 1998 live-action direct-to-video filmThe Jungle Book: Mowgli's Story.
He is based on the character of the same name from the original stories by Rudyard Kipling.
Role in the film[]
Baloo is present at the watering hole obeying the rules of the elephant Hathi at the area about no animal allowed to eat other animals or hunt. During the meeting, Baloo warns that Shere Khan that he and the animals should live in harmony to which Tabaqui insults him, much to Bagheera commenting about Shere Khan and his sidekick Tabaqui just as he and Tabaqui leave, warning the two that they will be to watching them. As Mowgli continues growing, he later encounters Baloo who is attempting to reach a beehive to get honey for himself to which the bear warns the man-cub to be cautious on getting honey for him, due to many bees surrounding the hive. Mowgli, uncontrollably attacked by bees, drops the beehive down to Baloo much to his advice. Baloo happily enjoys the honey Mowgli gave to him, despite the bees being an obstacle to Mowgli.
Baloo and Bagheera later attend a meeting with the Seeonee pack to which the two confront Shere Khan and Tabaqui about the two preparing to harm Mowgli only for the duo to leave the meeting upon hearing the two trying to protect Mowgli. Furthermore, as time went by, Baloo and Bagheera train Mowgli to help stand up against Shere Khan, such as the subject of tricking Chil, as well stalking and hunt. Baloo then offers Mowgli to eat grubs to fuel his energy which the plan to look for grubs was unsuccessful and when Mowgli asks Baloo to help teach him how to hunt fruit, Bagheera overhears, telling Baloo that Mowgli needs to practice hunting to fight against Shere Khan, just as Baloo tells Mowgli to impress Bagheera with the same bird call to distract Chil in order to impress Bagheera. Just as Mowgli heads to the water to catch fish, Baloo tells Bagheera to teach him to hunt fish just as Mowgli practices on catching fish like Baloo. To Mowgli's frustration, Baloo warns him that if he doesn't continue his training, Shere Khan might go after him which Bagheera finds out that he was right all along.
Baloo and Bagheera help Mowgli train to stand up against Shere Khan where Baloo offers Mowgli to eat grubs to gain energy to ready himself for Shere Khan. Later after Mowgli was unable to look for grubs like what a Baloo was doing to help Mowgli gain energy on consuming grubs, he then decides to catch fish on a lake. Soon as Mowgli was unable to catch one like Baloo, Mowgli approaches Baloo which he tells him to keep practicing to catch a fish like him, only for Mowgli to leave in frustration. Afterwards, Bagheera discusses with Mowgli about the dangers of Shere Khan stalking him. Baloo then tells Mowgli that Shere Khan never plays fair while Bagheera tells Mowgli to look into her eyes, telling him to know what it's like to be caught in a big cat's gaze, making an offer with Bagheera that if he practices with her, Mowgli would be immune to Shere Khan's hypnotism.
After Mowgli left the wolf pack after failing to catch a deer, he approaches Baloo who tells him that everyone makes mistakes, even Baloo himself, while Bagheera replies that the Seeonee pack might forgive him and Mowgli's wolf parents must have been worried about this, just as Bagheera plans to take Mowgli back to his wolf family, which Mowgli refuses to go back, telling the panther to leave him alone while Bagheera recaps of a flashback of how she escaped from a group of poachers when she was a cub, giving a valuable lesson she learned as she shares it with Mowgli, telling him that if he is mad or upset, the worst thing he can do is to run away from his troubles; Baloo replies that if he runs out of honey, he gets his own honey without getting upset, just as he tells Mowgli to get some rest for the next day.
The next day, Baloo approaches Mowgli telling him to catch some fish for breakfast, which Mowgli replies to him that by the time he catches one, it will be lunch time, much to Baloo telling Mowgli that it's a better day only for their conversation to be interrupted by a trio of chimps planning to trick Mowgli into trouble, much to Baloo telling Mowgli to stay away from the chimps to avoid getting tempted into doing mischief, just as the chimps keep harassing the two, which Baloo attempts to ward them away, much to Mowgli joining the chimps instead of staying with Baloo, fearing that Bagheera would not like this. After Mowgli was captured, Baloo then went on a search for Mowgli across the jungle where he tells Bagheera that he ran off with a group of monkeys, which Bagheera plans to help Baloo find Mowgli which Baloo is unable to get his head out of a honey tree which a porcupine manages to get his head off the tree so that he can catch up with Bagheera to find Mowgli. Baloo catches up with Bagheera who is on her way to find Mowgli and rescue him, which Bagheera tells Baloo to hope that they should arrive at Monkey Town first to make sure Mowgli escapes. All of a sudden, Baloo smashes through the hut's front door to rescue Mowgli who was trapped inside. As he arrives inside, he warns Mowgli to escape before Shere Khan arrives which the two manage to escape Monkey Town.
The next day, Hathi wakes up Baloo and Bagheera who have rescued Mowgli from Monkey Town which Hathi warns Mowgli about the bad news about his wolf mother Raksha which Mowgli rides on Hathi to arrive at the spot where Raksha was last seen which Baloo and Bagheera follow along where they arrive at Mowgli's home where Mowgli knew the horrible reason about why Hathi took him where they approach Raksha who was killed by Shere Khan where Akela, his family, and the friends of the jungle mourn over Raksha; Mowgli, who learns about this, then risks himself to leave the jungle after he claims that it was his fault. Furthermore when Mowgli regains his confidence and tenacity, Bagheera later confronts Shere Khan and Tabaqui to which during battle, Mowgli banishes both Shere Khan and Tabaqui from the jungle. The next day, Mowgli shows an animal encyclopedia to Baloo and Bagheera which gives out information of the animals he finds like monkeys, panthers, or elephants just as Baloo and Bagheera bid a farewell to Mowgli who discovers new adventures every time he opens the book.
Trivia[]
- Brian Doyle-Murray, who voices Baloo, is the younger brother of Bill Murray, who also voiced Baloo in the 2016 film. In short, both Murray brothers had voiced Baloo in two different live-action Jungle Book projects.
See also[]
