Bambi: The Reckoning 2024
Made by
ITN Studios
Bambi: The Reckoning Plot Summary
Read the complete plot summary and ending explained for Bambi: The Reckoning (2024). From turning points to emotional moments, uncover what really happened and why it matters.
In the past, a young fawn named Bambi lives happily with his mother until a poacher kills her. Bambi grows up alone, but meets a doe named Faline, who then gives birth to a fawn. Unfortunately, Faline is fatally run over by a truck carrying toxic waste, and Bambi’s offspring disappears. Devastated, Bambi drinks contaminated water from a river, which mutates him into a ravenous creature, determined to get his revenge.
In the present, Xana and her son Benji take a taxi to spend Thanksgiving with Simon and his family—his dementia-stricken mother Mary, his brothers Andrew and Joshua, Andrew’s wife Harriet, and their teenage son Harrison—while Simon himself promises to arrive before dinner. On the way, Bambi attacks the taxi and kills the driver while Xana and Benji reach Mary’s house.
Meanwhile, three hunters, Michael, Tyler, and Eddie prepare to hunt Bambi. Joshua leaves the house, only to be accidentally shot dead by Tyler. Harrison, brothers Benji and Mary, who start acting strange, know Bambi’s name, and has made several drawings of Bambi around the house. Bambi attacks the house and kills Harriet, forcing the family to flee to a caravan. Andrew tries to remove a log blocking the way, but Benji drives off upon seeing Bambi with only Xana and Mary inside; Andrew is unintentionally dragged along with them and dies from blood loss. Harrison encounters Bambi and gets lost in the forest, where he is mauled to death by a group of mutated rabbits.
Xana, Benji, and Mary find Michael, who takes them to a den where they meet Simon and his co-worker Jo. Simon reveals himself as the one who killed Faline and sprayed toxic waste into the river. During the conversation, Benji finds a garage where Tyler and Eddie have caged and mistreated a young fawn. Xana also learns that Simon plans to trap Bambi and kill him, not caring how many lives may be lost along the way. Tyler goes to urinate and ends up being decapitated by Bambi. When Eddie goes to investigate, Bambi rips off his legs and his head.
Benji frees the fawn and runs away; Xana and Simon go after him while Mary encounters Bambi, who tries to kill her. Jo takes her own life to kill Bambi, although he survives. Benji eventually reunites with Xana and Simon, only for Michael to arrive too, threatening them with gunpoint and demands for a fawn. Bambi drags Michael to the forest before approaching Benji. Simon abandons Xana and Benji and tries to flee, but gets killed by the rabbit inside his car. Realizing the fawn is Bambi’s offspring, Xana and Benji return it to him. However, a bloodied Michael arrives and fatally shoots Bambi, only to get shot dead by Mary, who has recovered from her dementia. Bambi bleeds out in front of Xana, Benji, and his own offspring.
Bambi: The Reckoning Timeline
Follow the complete movie timeline of Bambi: The Reckoning (2024) with every major event in chronological order. Great for understanding complex plots and story progression.
Bambi's early life and mother's death
In the forest, a young Bambi faces the loss of his mother when a poacher kills her. He grows up alone, learning to survive in a world that is harsh and indifferent. Along the way, he meets Faline, the start of his first important bond.
Faline's fawn birth and tragedy
Faline gives birth to a fawn, offering a glimmer of hope. Tragically, Faline is fatally struck by a truck carrying toxic waste. In the ensuing chaos, Bambi's fawn disappears and Bambi drinks contaminated river water, mutating into a vengeful predator.
Mutation and looming revenge
The contamination transforms Bambi into a ravenous creature bent on revenge. The forest's balance shifts as this predator consolidates power in the shadows. His presence looms over the events that follow.
Xana and Benji head to Thanksgiving
Xana and her son Benji take a taxi toward Simon's family for Thanksgiving, hoping to arrive before dinner. The journey hints at underlying tensions as they approach Mary's house. A sense of unease threads through the ride.
Bambi attacks the taxi
Mid-journey, Bambi launches a savage attack on the taxi and kills the driver. Xana and Benji manage to reach Mary's house despite the horror. The present danger from Bambi intrudes into the family gathering.
Hunters arrive and a death unfolds
Three hunters, Michael, Tyler, and Eddie, prepare to hunt Bambi. Joshua leaves the house and is accidentally shot dead by Tyler. Strange drawings around the house hint that Bambi is nearby.
Harriet dies; caravan retreat and Andrew's death
Bambi attacks the house, killing Harriet and forcing the family to flee to a caravan. Andrew tries to clear a log blocking the way, but Benji drives off with Xana and Mary inside; Andrew is unintentionally dragged along and dies from blood loss.
Harrison's forest fate
Harrison encounters Bambi and becomes lost in the forest, where he is mauled to death by a group of mutated rabbits. The threat in the woods deepens as the survivors watch from a distance. Fear and sorrow spread through the family.
Revelations in the den
Xana, Benji, and Mary find Michael, who takes them to a den where they meet Simon and Jo. Simon reveals he killed Faline and sprayed toxic waste into the river. Benji discovers a garage where Tyler and Eddie have caged and mistreated a young fawn.
Decisions and deaths unfold
Tyler is decapitated by Bambi after going to urinate. Eddie’s fate follows as Bambi rips off his legs and head. Jo sacrifices herself by taking her own life to kill Bambi, but he survives.
The fawn and pursuit intensify
Benji frees the caged fawn and they all surge forward in pursuit. Mary confronts Bambi, who presses his attack as Xana and Benji try to protect the vulnerable young deer. The tense chase edges toward a fragile resolution.
Final confrontation and fate
Simon abandons Xana and Benji and tries to flee, but is killed by a rabbit inside his car. Realizing the fawn is Bambi's offspring, Xana and Benji return it to him. Michael fatally shoots Bambi, then Mary shoots Michael; Bambi bleeds out in front of Xana, Benji, and his own offspring.
Bambi: The Reckoning Characters
Explore all characters from Bambi: The Reckoning (2024). Get detailed profiles with their roles, arcs, and key relationships explained.
Xana (Roxanne McKee)
Xana is a protective matriarch navigating a deadly crisis to safeguard her son and family. She must balance fear with practical decisions, showing resilience even as the situation grows increasingly dire. Her actions reveal a mother’s instinct to shield loved ones, though she is pulled into morally gray choices by the surrounding chaos.
Andrew (Russell Geoffrey Banks)
Andrew acts as a practical, sometimes blunt, family member trying to keep order amid rising peril. He grapples with loyalty to his kin while facing the unpredictable threat Bambi represents. His fate underscores the fragility of life in a crisis and the costs of attempting to control dangerous situations.
Mary (Nicola Wright)
Mary is a dementia-stricken matriarch whose presence anchors the family drama. Her moments of vulnerability contrast with sudden, unexpected acts of courage and distress, impacting how others respond to the threat. Her condition adds emotional stakes and complexities to the group's decisions.
Bambi: The Reckoning Settings
Learn where and when Bambi: The Reckoning (2024) takes place. Explore the film’s settings, era, and how they shape the narrative.
Time period
Past and Present
The film juxtaposes Bambi's tragic past with the present-day family crisis. It recounts the origin of Bambi's mutation and vengeance, then follows a present-day Thanksgiving gathering that spirals into chaos as the forest and its inhabitants collide with human violence.
Location
Mary's house, forest, caravan
The story centers around a rural family home where Xana and her relatives gather for Thanksgiving. Much of the action shifts between the quiet, tense interior of Mary's house and the surrounding forest that becomes a deadly backdrop as Bambi approaches. The group eventually flees to a caravan, creating a contrast between domestic safety and wild pursuit in the wild, untamed landscape.
Bambi: The Reckoning Themes
Discover the main themes in Bambi: The Reckoning (2024). Analyze the deeper meanings, emotional layers, and social commentary behind the film.
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Revenge
Bambi's transformation from prey to predator drives the central conflict. His pursuit of vengeance after Faline's death and the pollution of the river fuels a merciless, escalating cycle of violence. The theme scrutinizes the moral costs of revenge, as friends and family are drawn into a brutal confrontation. It questions whether vengeance can ever lead to closure or merely deeper harm.
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Nature and Corruption
The forest is not just a setting but an active force shaped by human toxins. Toxic waste and polluted water distort Bambi and the environment, turning a predator into a weapon. The film explores how exploitation and contamination corrupt both nature and those who react to it. Survival becomes a fight against a corrupted landscape as much as against a single foe.
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Family
A fractured family dynamic under extreme stress drives much of the tension. Dementia, loyalty, secrecy, and raw fear collide within the household, revealing how loved ones can become enemies and allies in turn. The ultimate choices—protecting children, confronting killers, and facing mortality—expose the fragile limits of family bonds under siege.
Bambi: The Reckoning Spoiler-Free Summary
Discover the spoiler-free summary of Bambi: The Reckoning (2024). Get a concise overview without any spoilers.
In the quiet stretch of a pine‑laden forest, a sudden crash shatters the peace and leaves two strangers stranded on a road that seems to stretch forever into the unknown. The wreckage becomes a thin line between ordinary life and a world where the natural and the uncanny bleed together, setting a tone of uneasy suspense that lingers like mist over the trees.
Xana is a determined mother who has spent years balancing the demands of her family with her own inner strength, while her teenage son Benji hovers on the edge of adolescence, yearning for independence yet still clinging to his mother’s protective presence. Their bond, forged through years of shared hardships, becomes the emotional core of the story as they navigate a landscape that feels both familiar and menacing. The pair’s journey is as much about confronting their own hidden fears as it is about surviving the external threat that lurks just beyond sight.
Bambi is no ordinary deer. Once a symbol of gentle woodland life, this creature has been twisted by profound loss, emerging as a towering, grief‑driven force that stalks the forest’s shadows. Its presence turns the serene woods into a stark arena of tension, where every rustle of leaves hints at something far more ominous. The film paints the creature with a haunting melancholy, suggesting that its monstrous form is as much a product of sorrow as of horror.
Against this backdrop of looming dread, the narrative weaves together themes of parental love, the fragile trust between generations, and the unsettling idea that nature itself can turn hostile when wounded. The atmosphere is thick with foreboding, inviting the audience to wonder what will emerge from the darkness and how Xana and Benji will confront a terror that is both primal and deeply personal.
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