Paddington

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Paul King

April 28, 2015

A young bear (Ben Whishaw) travels to England in quest of a new habitat after a catastrophic earthquake destroys his home in the Peruvian rainforest. The bear, known as “Paddington” after a London train station, seeks refuge with Henry (Hugh Bonneville) and Mary Brown’s family (Sally Hawkins). Although Paddington’s fascination with city life quickly wins the Browns over, taxidermist Millicent Clyde (Nicole Kidman) has her sights set on the unique bear and his hide.

Given that we are dealing with a talking bear in this instance, Paddington accomplishes the difficult task of creating a humorous yet plausible universe. The animation by Framestore is just outstanding; it captures the essence of our lovely bear with a depth of personality and soulful eyes that are likely to remind devoted bear aficionados of the reason they still have their stuffed animal in the attic. Paddington is a true love letter to the city with its embrace of the different because everyone is different and a core belief that everybody can find a place to belong in London, even though King gives the city its initial iciness.

He also goes above and beyond what we’ve come to anticipate from the majority of American family movies in terms of intelligence, humor, and wit. Paddington may contain a few references that adults are more likely to find amusing than kids, but it treats kids with respect, and the movie contains both funny and sad parts. It’s difficult not to have a profound regard for both actors as you watch them in this film be just as believable in totally different characters. It’s a film that is passionate, emotional, and powerfully vulnerable.

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