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Paul King
January 12, 2018
Paddington the bear, who lives with the Brown family, is a well-liked local resident who brings happiness and marmalade with him wherever he goes. He discovers a pop-up book one fine day at an antique store, the ideal gift for his cherished aunt’s 100th birthday. When the priceless book is stolen, Paddington sets out on a heroic adventure to find the burglar in time for Aunt Lucy’s grand celebration.
Paddington’s unbounded optimism and unwavering faith in kindness are never demanded of him in order to overcome the villain. Paddington’s entire, unrelenting, and uncompromising goodness is precisely why the Brown family’s neighborhood has grown to love him, and it’s ultimately what keeps saving him in “Paddington 2”.
If I had to pick one thing against Paddington, it would be Nicole Kidman’s Millicent, who was played out as more of a cartoonish baddie than a real baddie. On the other hand, Hugh Grant’s Phoenix Buchanan never portrays a true heavy but rather looks, feels, and behaves like a real terrible guy. It’s great to witness Grant absolutely let loose in a way we haven’t seen in a while. Grant, who has a reputation for being a quasi-cartoonish bad boy, offers his most fulfilling performance in years here.
None the less I like Paddington 2 immensely. Hugh Grant’s grounded yet cheeky badness; Ben Whishaw’s whimsically informed vocal work; Sally Hawkins’ embrace of the absurd with unabashed sentimentality; and so many inspired, wondrously created, and intelligent, entertaining scenes that there was hardly a moment in Paddington 2 that I wasn’t laughing, crying, sniffling, or just plain being immersed in the world of this beautiful little bear that had me believing, truly believing
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