Review of Paddington (2014) by Dawdlingpoet — 20 Nov 2021

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.