Review by John M. Delia Jr.
The fun and lovable bear is back on screen and ready to have more interesting adventures that will thrill your heart. His unusual way of understanding how the world works along with is strong need to always use his manners makes this character wonderful to all who he meets.
After their visit from the explorer from England, Aunt Lucy (Imelda Staunton) and Uncle Pastuzo (Michael Gambon) are planning their trip to London. When they discover a small cub in danger and rush to rescue him. They come to realize that what’s important is to take care of this young little lad. As we all know he made it to London but his aunt and uncle never did.
Now living full time with the Brown’s, Paddington (Ben Whishaw) wants to buy a spectacular gift for his Aunt Lucy. He feels that he owes his Aunt everything he has and must find something very special to send her. When he comes across this popup book of London that he discovers in Mr. Gruber’s shop, things begin to go haywire.
When the book is stolen the blame gets pointed at Paddington, where eventually he gets sent to prison. While this horrible event is unfolding, the Browns; Henry (Hugh Bonneville), Mary (Sally Hawkins), Judy (Madeleine Harris), Jonathan (Samuel Joslin), and Mrs. Bird (Julie Walters) set out to find a way to clear his name. His friends and neighbors are devastated, even Mr. Gruber (Jim Broadbent) himself.
While in prison Paddington meets some unusual characters, Knuckles McGinty (Brendan Gleeson), Phibs (Noah Tayler), and Spoon (Aaron Neil), where he embarks in another adventure to try and stay alive. But of course, Paddington always manages to find a way to make new friends.
Director and writer Paul King puts together a well appreciated heartwarming storyline that will entertain the young ones and give a wonderful messages to the others. He does a brilliant job developing the characters and presents a very well told narrative to the audience. The special effects are wonderfully used and make Paddington’s character look very real on screen.
This is a very entertaining story that includes all the necessary parts to make this a successful film and is sure to entertain everyone. It is worth grabbing all the kids and piling into the car for a nice day at your local theater.
Final Comment: I based my grade on the enjoyable adventurous storyline and the special message that it gave. (4 out of 5 stars)