Social Deconstruction: Chinchillas: Film

Thumper in "Bambi": A classic children’s film that has a rabbit in it is Bambi. Thumper is a young rabbit that is one of the best friends of the main character, Bambi. One of the reasons that Thumper is so important to the story is because the film started out on a very serious and adult note, with the death of Bambi’s mother by a hunter. Thumper is often funny and cute with his ever-thumping back leg, bringing the film a much lighter tone. Thumper’s character is very smart and always giving advice to his friends. His intentions are always good, and he has a personality that is very relatable for the children that the film targets. His love for his friends sends a positive message to the children watching. The filmmakers probably chose a rabbit for this character because of the innocence that rabbits are often attributed. Innocence is a character that both the character and the children watching the film likely share, making the rabbit a good choice. There is not really a specific message for the intended audience by choosing a rabbit for Thumper. (http://disney.wikia.com/wiki/Thumper_(Bambi)--link also for image of Thumper

Thumper from Walt Disney's "Bambi"

Monty Python's "The Holy Grail": A film that is intended primarily for adults that involves a rabbit is much more difficult to come by, because most films that have rabbits in them are aimed more for the younger audience. One film for adults that does involve a rabbit is Monty Python and the Holy Grail. In this film there is a rabbit called the Rabbit of Caerbannog. In the film, the knights are travelling and they come across a cave that they need access to. They are told that a vicious creature with pointy teeth guards the entrance to the cave, which terrifies them. ("Killer Rabbit with Big Pointy Teeth") When they arrive at the cave, they realize that the guard of the cave is actually a little, fluffy white rabbit. They believe that the rabbit must be harmless only to have one of the men approach it and be immediately decapitated. They end up needing to use a hand grenade
to kill the rabbit and get into the cave. I believe that this film was used the rabbit for ironic effect. In most films and stories, the animals that play the “villain” are always animals that have been considered dangerous in history or that have been a threat to people in some way. By choosing the rabbit they are straying from that tendency because the rabbit is so often thought of as “sweet”, “cute”, and “skittish”.