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| Paddington (voiced by Ben Whishaw) in "Paddington 2" Photo Credit: Imdb.com |
Three years ago, director Paul King gave audiences a charming film adaptation of Michael Bond’s (who passed away in June 2017) beloved, literary creation, Paddington. Following the story of a young bear who travels to England from the jungles of Peru, King’s “Paddington” stayed true to the spirit of the source material and created a movie that both children and adults enjoyed.
King now returns to bring us “Paddington 2,” a sequel that manages to top the wonderful original. With a talented cast, skilled direction, a heartfelt story, and gorgeous visuals, King once again delivers a film that cherishes its titular hero’s legacy and realizes how much Paddington means to those who have fallen in love with his stories on the page.
After the events of the first film, Paddington (voiced by Ben Whishaw) is enjoying his life in England with Mr. and Mrs. Brown (Hugh Bonneville and Sally Hawkins), their children, Jonathan (Samuel Joslin) and Judy (Madeleine Harris), and their maid, Mrs. Bird (Julie Walters). With his Aunt Lucy’s (voiced by Imelda Staunton) 100th birthday approaching, Paddington decides to get a job so he can raise enough money to buy a vintage pop-up book of London to send to his aunt in Peru. When it’s stolen by a washed-up actor named Phoenix Buchanan (Hugh Grant), Paddington is thought to be the culprit and is sent to jail. The Brown family then has to try to clear Paddington’s name and figure out Phoenix’s purpose for stealing the book.
Ben Whishaw provides splendid voice work for Paddington. He gives Paddington a gentleness and warmth that makes you want to reach through the screen and embrace him. His voice work is matched with beautiful visual effects for Paddington’s character, with the CGI being able to give him a range of emotions that help bring him to life and make him seem more than just computer-generated visuals.
What’s great about the Brown family in these films is how none of the family members are at odds with each other for clichéd and comedic purposes. They’re still comedic, but it’s because of the situations in which they find themselves, all while keeping their strong, familial dynamic alive throughout the movie.
Other than the cast members portraying the Brown family, “Paddington 2” also provides tremendous talent for its supporting characters, just like in the original. Besides the return of Jim Broadbent as Mr. Gruber, the kind-hearted antique-shop owner, the film welcomes the new additions of Hugh Grant and Brendan Gleeson. Grant looks as though he’s having a blast as the villainous, self-admiring actor, and Gleeson’s terrific as the prison’s gruff chef who takes Paddington under his wing.
The live-action cast is so superb that even in the scenes without Paddington, the movie never becomes dull, as there are many talented actors and actresses in the ensemble. Even though this isn’t a blockbuster-sized children’s movie like the “Harry Potter” films, the cast members seem committed to giving Paddington the adaptation that he deserves, and their engagement to the material helps us become more involved with the story.
The screenplay by King and Simon Farnaby isn’t big in a narrative sense, but that’s not a flaw by any means because this is a story that doesn’t feel the need to use Paddington’s popularity to do anything overblown. Instead, King and Farnaby decide to just have simple fun with him and place him in a low-stakes, yet endearing adventure.
As a director, King gives us a special, magical movie that’s strengthened by the accomplished acting, direction, screenplay, music, visual effects, and cinematography, all of which elevates this sequel from being a disposable children’s film. As with the first movie, you can tell that “Paddington 2” wasn’t made with the purpose of making money by just coasting on the titular character’s name recognition, but was meant to give us a movie that puts so much dedication to getting everything right about Michael Bond’s timeless creation and capturing its essence. He would be proud at the care and respect that went into making this film.
A couple of times in the movie, Paddington quotes his aunt by saying, “If we’re kind and polite, the world will be right.” Well, I think that the world is now a little better with this film.
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