Review #852: 'Paddington' (2014)

When the announcement was made of a feature-length adaptation of Michael Bond's beloved Paddington bear - the polite, marmalade-loving, bespectacled bear from deepest, darkest Peru - I'm sure the common assumption was that disaster was afoot. How do you take a character so steeped in nostalgia, some distinctively old-fashioned, and so quintessentially British, and translate it for a modern audience of children raised on multi-film franchises, CGI and fat suits? Based on the strength of the film's finished product, you employ a young, ambitious director with a real talent for visual flair.

His name is Paul King, and his only previous film, Bunny and the Bull (2009), was a funny, sweet odyssey into the weird, similar in many ways to his most popular TV work, The Mighty Boosh. Paddington is an enormous step up into the mainstream, and could have easily been yet another cheap and formulaic Brit-com; films that are churned out quicker and lazier than they are placed in Asda's bargain bin. Yet despite it's thread-bare plot and familiar genre tropes, Paddington not only offers excitement in some slapstick set-pieces that will surely please the kids, but King makes the film an interesting analogy of immigration, a hot topic in modern society.

When Paddington (voiced with adorable naivety by Ben Whishaw) arrives at Paddington station, leaving his Aunt Lucy (Imelda Staunton) and Uncle Pastuzo (Michael Gambon) after an earthquake destroys his home, the image of the tiny bear, adorned with a sign around his neck asking any friendly Londoners to "please look after this bear, thank you", brings to mind the images of poverty-stricken immigrants arriving at Ellis Island in the 1900's as much as it does the child evacuees during World War II, Bond's original inspiration. He is taken in by inner city statistical analyst Henry Brown (Hugh Bonneville) and his wife, artist Mary (Sally Hawkins), and is soon causing chaos in their home.

Evil taxidermist Millicent (Nicole Kidman) shows up about a third of the way in, intent on capturing and stuffing the rare talking bear, teaming up with grumpy (and randy) next-door neighbour Mr. Curry (Peter Capaldi) in what is the only contrived plot-thread of the movie. Her purpose is to be Paddington's antagonist, and it's during these scenes that the film stutters. When the focus is on the curious bear's adventures and pratfalls, and his relationship with the Brown family, this is an incredibly warm, visually engaging experience. It's peppered with wonderful moments, such as Paddington's scribbled addresses appearing out of the London skyline and the ever-changing wallpaper, which blossoms and fades to fit in with the film's various moods. This is a delightful surprise, and I'm eager to see where King will go from here.


Directed by: Paul King
Starring: Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins, Ben Whishaw, Nicole Kidman, Peter Capaldi, Jim Broadbent, Imelda Staunton, Michael Gambon
Country: UK/France

Rating: ****

Tom Gillespie