X
- 2015
- PG
- TWC-Dimension
- 1 h 35 m
- 2015
- PG
- TWC-Dimension
- 1 h 35 m
Summary From the beloved novels by Michael Bond, Paddington tells the story of the comic misadventures of a young Peruvian bear who travels to the city in search of a home. Finding himself lost and alone, he begins to realize that city life is not all he had imagined – until he meets the kindly Brown family who read the label around his neck tha...
Directed By: Paul King
Written By: Hamish McColl, Michael Bond, Paul King
- 2015
- PG
- TWC-Dimension
- 1 h 35 m
- 2015
- PG
- TWC-Dimension
- 1 h 35 m
Paddington
77
7.9
Where to Watch
Summary From the beloved novels by Michael Bond, Paddington tells the story of the comic misadventures of a young Peruvian bear who travels to the city in search of a home. Finding himself lost and alone, he begins to realize that city life is not all he had imagined – until he meets the kindly Brown family who read the label around his neck tha...
Directed By: Paul King
Written By: Hamish McColl, Michael Bond, Paul King
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 38 Critic Reviews
77
92% Positive
35 Reviews
35 Reviews
8% Mixed
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 38 Critic Reviews
77
92% Positive
35 Reviews
35 Reviews
8% Mixed
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Marmaladen with gloriously silly jokes, pitch-perfect performances and incidental detail, this is a warm, witty and wondrously inventive great big bear-hug of a movie.
This comic chronicle of a Peruvian bear’s adventures in London turns out to be a total charmer, made with panache, élan and generous dollops of marmalade.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 332 User Ratings
7.9
85% Positive
283 Ratings
283 Ratings
10% Mixed
34 Ratings
34 Ratings
5% Negative
15 Ratings
15 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 332 User Ratings
7.9
85% Positive
283 Ratings
283 Ratings
10% Mixed
34 Ratings
34 Ratings
5% Negative
15 Ratings
15 Ratings
Due to a terrible earthquake that devastates the rainforest of Peru, the home of a bear is destroyed and the cub goes to England in search of a new home. Once in London, Paddington is nicknamed after a train station and finds refuge with the family of Henry and Mary Brown. A truly surprising directorial debut for Paul King, fantastic direction and equally grandiose editing for a film that is not only a film for kids but also an important food for thought on post-brexit England.
A film to be seen even if you want understand what a quality CGI is and how this can be wisely measured and used.
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There's a lot of charm in this film - it has a comic book, surreal feel to it, seeming to be half way between cartoon and live action, in that it relies on CGI but is obviously set in real life locations.
The characters are warm and likeable, as you may expect from a kids film but I didn't feel it was too patronising, as I suppoe it could potentially be. There are some emotional scenes, even potentially mildly traumatic ones for very young children, that would probably explain the 'PG' rating its been awarded. I liked that the film gave the viewer a good, clear overview of Paddingtons background, the environment he lived in, his relatives and what happened.
One thing that particularly appealed to me, were the voices, as in the celebrity cast (including Hugh Bonneville, Julie Walters, Matt Lucas, Nicole Kidman, Peter Capaldi, Michael Gambon and Geoffrey Palmer, to name but a few), who are quite emotive and really bring the characters to life. Nicole Kidman and Peter Capaldi appear together in various scenes and I found them quite entertaining, as the lady villain of the film and the grumpy next door neighbour.
The script is quite witty in parts, it made me laugh and I can imagine kids would find it quite endearing and amusing as well. I noticed that the film seemed quite colourful, not in terms of strong language (heaven forbid(!)) but literally, with the house Paddington ends up staying in, really coming to life with the yellow walls and blue kitchen surfaces and walls. They seemed to stick out in my mind for some reason. In other scenes with night shots/scenes of the city, at less happy moments, there's a strong emphasis on black and dark blue, making the surroundings seem more spooky and unfriendly somehow.
It is somewhat poignant in a sense, I suppose, in that some of the basic observations made (basically conveying that Londoners are more self centered than he'd somehow been led to believe) - things like that, while obviously somewhat of a stereotype, are important and challenging points to put across in a family film - do we empathise with others, do we notice those who are less fortunate and give people a chance to start again? yadda yadda. I can certainly relate to the feeling that busy cities are rather imposing and a bit daunting in a sense and I could certainly relate, on a personal level, to Paddingtons anxiety and nerves when first encountering the downward escalators on the London Underground, as I admit I have a phobia when it comes to ecalators that go over an edge - I find them quite daunting myself(!).
I thought the CGI was particularly good - Paddingtons eyes and nose looking particularly genuine, so I thought anyway. I remember when such CGI based films first came out, the quality certainly wasn't as detailed as it appears to be now. For one example, you can see the ruffles in Paddingtons fur in some detail.
I'd happily recommend this film as an entertaining and amusing family film, safe for viewing by almost anyone except perhaps the youngest of children. It features good CGI and some clever dialogue at times and the celebrity cast alone made it worth a watch, in my book anyway. I know I certainly enjoyed it, so I feel happy to recommend it.
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Paddington is decidedly, proudly unhip. It’s a lovely, endearing chocolate-box of a movie.
How English is this movie? As English as a cold, rainy day at the beach. As English as the politeness that masks hostility, as English as a pie that contains meat, as English as secretly wishing you lived in some other country.
Any movie that manages to work in a dig at the National Theatre's heavier pretensions — in a subway sequence, Paddington trots by a National poster for a (fake) play with the amusingly dour title "Damned by Despair" — is OK with me.
Paddington is a charmer, portrayed as a little guy whose unflagging goodness makes it easy to forgive his clumsiness. That’s the one detail from Bond’s book any adaptation has to get right, and this one nails it.
Full credit to the film-makers, who manage to map their digital bear against his human co-stars and marry Bond’s antique conceit to a high-concept story.
Prior to watching this:
I have not read the novels or comic strip.
Premise: A bear from South America learns to speak English, goes to London and has adapt to life there.
Pros:
1. A reasonably OK film for the kids.
Cons:
1. A bear that talks? How come no human was surprised that a bear could talk? This frustrated me as I watched the film. It's not difficult for the director to explain this and for him to omit this issue just smacks of laziness!
2. Unconvincing storyline and acting... throughout the film.
3. It is a film for kids.
Score: 3/5 (no half score). Save your money and catch it on TV.
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Nostalgia of the original PADDINGTON BEAR series and the beloved novel by Michael Bond aside, Paul King’s PADDINGTON is a trademark Christmas offering from UK, a love letter to London and everything is tailor-made to not cross the borderline of being kids-friendly, but for adult audience who doesn’t grow up with the said bear, the film is generically predictable (the only exception belongs to the yardstick that Londoners never even raise their eyebrows to see a talking bear in front of them) and one might feel a bit disappointed that it couldn’t be more daring or ingenious considering its all-too-cute art productions which resemble lightweight Wes Anderson artworks and a wonderfully anthropomorphic CGI bear named Paddington (voiced by Whishaw).
keep reading my review on my blog: please google "cinema omnivore", thanks!
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[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]
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They copied Paddington 2 and removed the 2. Bad movnie!!
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Production Company
StudioCanal,
Anton,
TF1 Films Production,
Canal+,
Ciné+,
TF1,
Amazon Prime Video,
Heyday Films,
J.Q. Pictures,
Dimension Films,
The Weinstein Company
Release Date Jan 16, 2015
Duration 1 h 35 m
Rating PG
Tagline Please look after this bear. Thank you
Awards
Empire Awards, UK
• 1 Win & 2 Nominations
BAFTA Awards
• 2 Nominations
Golden Trailer Awards
• 2 Nominations
