I’ve spent the last few days watching the Paddington film series.
I wanted to give Paddington In Peru a fair review when I saw it in the theaters.
I will say, I typically hate kids/family movies.
They are usually very predictable and lazy filmmaking because they kids will watch anything.
Having said all of that, the Paddington film series as a whole is really good.
Paddington 2 is close to great.
Unfortunately, Paddington In Peru falls short of the first two.
He does sometimes make a mess of things but he is very lovable and wins the family over.
That’s pretty much what the first movie is about.
Oh, Paddington also loves marmalade.
He ends up in jail thanks to a fantastic bad guy performance by Hugh Grant.
Paddington is a CGI bear and I really shouldn’t care about him so much.
It’s also a masterful job by director (of the first 2 movies) Paul King.
He makes you root for something that isn’t even real.
I started to ask myself if I was nuts for liking this bear at all.
But why shouldn’t we love Paddington?
He is only kind and tries to do the right thing.
He isn’t annoying (like so many characters in kids movies).
He has great intentions.
If you don’t like Paddington the bear, I think you might not have a soul.
Unfortunately, Paddington In Peru doesn’t stack up with the brilliance of the first two movies.
But, once the shabby plot kicks in, the movie loses a lot.
The whole second act is about a chase for Antonio Banderas to find gold.
Paddington doesn’t give a fuck about gold.
Luckily, the end of the movie saves it.
It focuses back on Paddington and his family.
Before the last 25 minutes, I was wondering if I could even recommend this.
A big issue is the old director Paul King put so much care and thought in every shot.
It was phenomenal filmmaking that used creative choices you wouldn’t see in most movies for adults.
Paddington In Peru was made by first time filmmaker Dougal Wilson and it doesn’t match up.
If you’ve been reading this blog with your eyes rolled, I get it.
I would have had a similar reaction before this week.
Movies for kids suck.
This series really is the exception.
But, if you haven’t seen Paddington 1 or 2, check those out for sure.
