Paddington Film Review: A Taxidermist’s Worst Nightmare

RELEASED  23 November 2014       CERTIFICATE  PG  

DIRECTOR  Paul King

CAST Nicole Kidman, Michael Gambon, Ben Whishaw, Imelda Staunton, Peter Capaldi, Julie Walters

RUNNING TIME  95 mins

PLOT Having had his home destroyed by an earthquake, Paddington is forced to leave darkest Peru, and voyage to London in the pursuit of a new home. With a romanticised expectation of London, he arrives at Paddington station let down, discovering alienation and isolation.  He begins to realise that the city is not exactly what he dreamed of. Paddington loses all hope until he meets the Brown family, who take pity on him and decide to let him live with them temporarily. Whilst in search of a real true home, Paddington catches the eye of a taxidermist (Nicole Kidman) who is determined to have him as a new addition to her collection.

A whimsical tale that oozes childhood nostaglia, Paddington is the perfect film if you’re looking for quick laughs and an easy watch. Aimed mainly at younger audience, the simple plot and two dimensional characters lead to little emotional character investment and an overall nonchalant viewing experience.

The only credit to this adaption of Paddington can be given to the animation of the loveable bear, that remarkably hit the nail on the head. From the infamous blue duffle coat down to the hidden marmalade sandwich under the hat, the precise attention to detail on adapting the illustrated Paddington character to animation was one of the only aspects of the film that director, Paul King succeeded in.

Having directed The Mighty Boosh and Bunny  and the Bull, King was a some what bizarre choice for this directing and writing role, turning his hand from adult black comedy toadapting a children’s classic. This, in turn came with great expectations of a hint of adult humour tingeing the child-friendly storyline. Being one of the rare films to feature the grotesque art of taxidermy, King had the ideal chance to play around with adult humour. However, he missed the mark, leaving a bland taste in the mouth and a film that fails to appeal to the adult audience.

From the outset, adapting the timeless childhood classic, Paddington from paper to the big screen naturally came with big boots that would be a challenge to fill. It is apparent that a proportionate amount of the film’s budget was plunged into the cgi animation of the Paddington character, portrayed  flawlessly. Despite this, narrative and character development has been left neglected.

VERDICT

Although the marmalade’s flowing and our nostalgic childhood memories of Paddington have been injected with life, the film fails to engage. Adult humour is sparse, leaving Paddington more of a kids only babysitter of a film.