Most CGI/Live Action hybrid movies aimed at kids and families are anything but timeless pieces of cinema as they are heavily reliant on juvenile humor, shameless product placement, and little to no respect for the audience's intelligence. So imagine the surprise that both critics and audiences got when the movie Paddington was released to critical acclaim and great reception from not just kids but even adults. Based on the famous British children’s books by Micheal Bond and Peggy Fortnum. This is a movie that by the looks of it would have been doomed to be like every other CGI/Live Action movie of its kinds like Garfield or Alvin and the Chipmunks, but this movie is a rare example of a film that has major respect for its source material and delivers on an admittedly cliched but also adorable story that is fun for everyone.
When his home in Darkest Peru gets destroyed, and his Uncle Pastuza tragically passes away, a young rare species of a bear later called Paddington (Ben Whishaw) is sent by his Aunt Lucy (Imelda Staunton) to the heart of London where he is to find a family who will take him in and love him unconditionally. Paddington comes across a dysfunctional family called the browns who find Paddington in a train station where they take pity on him and invite them to come and stay with them despite Mr. Brown’s (Hugh Bonneville) hesitance. The Browns help Paddington look for the famous explorer Montgomery Clyde (Tim Downie) who previously discovered his family in Peru and gave his parents their names thinking he’ll be able to take care and look after him. However, an evil musem taxidermist named Agatha (Madeleine Worrall) plans to capture Paddington to stuff him and put him in a museum to complete her collection.
I never read any of the Paddington books as a kid because I never grew up in the London area, but it honestly doesn’t matter because this movie feels like the perfect introduction to the famous bear that is well known in London England even if not in other countries. The film is undeniably charming and well written. Some of the running gags and subplots they set up surprisingly do pay off, especially in the third act. The funny thing though is that the majority of the story in this movie feels like a very cliched setup that you would expect to see in other CGI/Live-Action Hybrid movies with a CGI creature or creatures moving into a live-action human’s house and turning their world upside down. The thing that sets this movie’s story apart comes down to a few things. One, this movie actually knows how to charm the audience with lovable characters that do not resort to using modern slang or showing off random product placement in order to win the audience over. Two, they tweak a lot of details that make the typical cliched story feel fresh and enjoyable. And finally, it respects the audience's intelligence and understands that kids deserve to have a story that while having a lot of slapstick and over the top moments, also has a lot of down to earth and character-driven storytelling that makes it more than just another silly and goofy adventure mostly catered to the younger crowd. The story may not be reinventing the wheel, but this is indeed a great refresher for those sick of seeing other CGI/Live Action movies that fail to enchant.
The characters on paper seem like cliched throwaway characters that you’d find in most any other family movies, but its thanks to the director's direction and each actor's execution that make them charming and enjoyable. Paddington played by Ben Whishaw is so flipping adorable as he succeeds at being a character with a boatload of charm and the adorable running gag on how he mistakes everyday things for something else which can lead to some funny comedy. The family Paddington stays with each have their own cliched personalities that you’d think would get old after a while such as the father being a stick in the mud and overprotective as well as the daughter being rebellious. Thankfully much like Paddington himself, their characters are done in a way that feels fresh and not at all redundant and they give them extra layers that make them more than what they seem. Then there is the villain of the film played by Madeleine Worrall who may seem like a pointless addition, but there is enough character and backstory to why she is doing the things she is doing which makes her most interesting than she had any right to be. These are just fun characters and they make the story even more of a joy to watch.
The cinematography shows off the beauty of London England which has its many quirks and beautiful scenery. There are times when the cinemaotgrpy tries to be more experimental with how it gets its shots across such as a great effect where a dollhouse opens reviling the rooms in the brown family home in sort of a Wes Anderson style of filmmaking. Then there are the CGI effects to bring Paddington as well as other animated bears to life. The realistic but anthropomorphic designs surprisingly do not look uncanny and they have a wide range of expressions as well as great costuming especially when it comes to Paddington’s outfit. The slapstick is very well timed and the visuals that come with that are very well handled. They managed to take the CGI/Live-Action Hybrid movie format and turned it into a piece of moving art instead of making it to be one giant commercial.
The music was composed by Nick Urata whose compositional scores overthrow the inserted songs in the background. The compositions are lovely and fun as they perfectly capture the spirit and charm that is related to Paddington himself. One little detail I noticed that was admittedly cute was the band that plays in the background during scenes when exploring London, which managed to bring a smile to my face. It’s true that the film does use some inserted music to emphasize a funny moment and while I think the film could do without it, that kind of music does not stick around for too long at the very least.
Paddington is a great movie that defies the expectations of what the audience could expect from a CGI/Live-Action hybrid movie by delivering a simple story with great characters and tons of charm and funny humor for all ages. The storytelling may feel a little cliched sometimes, but the writing and execution are so darn well-conceived that it makes the experience feel like something new even if it is old-fashioned. Other CGI/Live-Action Hybrid movies need to take notes from this movie because this is so far the gold standard as to how to make a movie that does not rely on product placement and dated jokes in order to entertain an audience.
(Final Grade: A-)