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Ten years since the original film, Paddington hasn’t aged a day – and neither has the concept. Taking the tried and tested formula to South America, Paddington in Peru once again delivers fur-filled charm.
When it comes to taking your children to see new movies, the Paddington franchise is probably one you won’t mind sitting through. Heck, even if you’re almost 60 with 30-year-old children, you’ll probably still be asking for a family outing to see it (yes I will take you, Mum). That’s for two reasons: Paddington comes with his own bountiful legacy, and director Paul King has nailed an on-screen format.
Quietly delivering charm that’s the right kind of whimsical stereotype, everybody gets to live their best British fantasy through these films – and that’s still true for Paddington in Peru. Sure, it’s not quite as magical as Paddington 2 and there are definitely faults, but you just can’t help but be won over by the charm of a bear with the best elocution you’ve ever seen.
This time around, there’s an intriguing subtext. Olivia Colman prancing about as a dastardly singing nun can only distract you so much from the course correction toward Paddington’s purposeful take on British politics. In a Western world where immigration is at the fore, the brown bear romances us into thinking things are simpler than they seem… and perhaps we need that.
What is Paddington 3 about?
Paddington (Ben Whishaw) is still very much loving London life when we pick up with him in the third installment, but he gets a worrying letter from his home country. Aunt Lucy (Imelda Staunton) has been living at the Home for Retired Bears near the Amazon, with the Reverend Mother (Olivia Colman) asking Paddington to visit after she shows depression-like behaviors.
The Brown family agrees and heads across the world on a trip of a lifetime – only when they get there, Aunt Lucy is nowhere to be seen. From there, the animated movie becomes a race-against-time chase to find Aunt Lucy in the middle of the jungle, met by mysterious boat captain Hunter Cabot (Antonio Banderas) along the way.
Old-school British whimsy still wins
StudioCanalLet’s call a spade a spade: Paddington Bear is the epitome of British charm. If you didn’t live in the UK and perhaps have never visited, the ‘Tea and Toast’ approach to the Big Smoke is probably what you’d expect to find the minute you land at Heathrow. There are no cyclists gobbing on the street or overpriced lattes in this fantasy, and King is keeping it alive impeccably well.
The combined environmental and personable charm is exactly why we’ll merrily go along with anything our favorite brown bear does, from accidentally sinking a boat to smashing up things that don’t belong to him. Paddington in Peru shows our titular character with his strongest sense of self yet, all the while being the most far removed from his past and heritage that we’ve seen him.
Cue a lot of very lovely and necessary messages about the importance of home and family, as well as the flexibility of what they can mean. I’d like to hope it provides real-life immigrants with some level of ‘seen,’ but the cynic in me is convinced the overwhelming British twee takes away from Paddington 3 ever coming close to that.
But we’re not here for socio-political think pieces, are we? No! We’re here for cute bears and subconsciously funny families doing heartwarming things! This is something we get in bucketloads, centering the more grown-up Browns as they figure out how to function together as four adults. That feeling I described earlier about older parents and children watching this is exactly what King wants to achieve, and he’s done it.
StudioCanalIt is absolutely outrageous just how charming Paddington continues to be, and the only option available to us is to become fully immersed in it – and come out the other side absolutely loving it. Even when you notice the glaring plot holes or the ending that’s become a bit too soap opera for its own good, you don’t care. Paddington in Peru is essentially a hit of Calpol before you go to sleep, it’s that soothing for the soul.
While there is absolutely not enough Julie Walters featured for my liking, Emily Mortimer slots in as Mrs. Brown so well that you forget Sally Hawkins was even weirdly recast. Bonneville continues to be Bonneville’s best self, while our grown kids are solid support. Olivia Colman is doing what she’s frankly made for – a campy, slightly suspect nun with an overly animated face and impeccable comedic timing. It’s an obvious conclusion that she had to be in this franchise at some point.
For my fellow ’90s babies, it’s a particularly heartwarming moment to see Antonio Banderas back on screen in a family-friendly movie… in human form. He’s been smashing Puss in Boots for yonks now, but it’s not really been since Spy Kids 3-D that we’ve seen him as himself in a movie geared toward kids. There’s no microwave that magically turns cardboard into McDonald’s here, but he slips back into a familiarity that heightens comedic value.
For adults, there’s interesting subtext
StudioCanalNever mind the kids and our aging parents… there’s something else at play during Paddington in Peru for the rest of us. Even before we knew anything about the film other than the country change, there was a looming question – how on Earth did Paddington manage to get a passport?
The third installment is slyly re-writing the media fabric for how we view immigration with a big old helping of Disneyfied magic. Paddington’s passport comes in the mail with no questions asked, features an absolutely unusable portrait photo, yet gets him to Peru within 30 minutes. It’s a miracle only our sweet bear can pull off, and nobody really cares about the logistics.
But I do, dear reader. I notice. I’m going to coin this ‘Bear-washing’ – a scenario that in the real world would be incredibly volatile, but we’re now convinced is simple and lovely and okay without any societal baggage attached to it. This could either be interpreted in two ways. A) London is a wonderfully embracing place with the most gorgeously diverse population you’ve ever seen, or B) London is trying to make you forget about its problems bubbling away under the surface.
Regardless of your personal opinion of King’s approach, it’s mostly fascinating to note the timing of all this. Kids’ movies have played into themes bigger than their supposed appearance before, but this time feels incredibly overt. We’ve been asking if we can separate the art from the artist for decades, but now we’re about to be asked if we can separate the bear from his identity (interestingly, the complete opposite of what actually happens).
Perhaps we need hope that things can be this lovely and easy in reality. Perhaps we need to be reminded that people should be able to come and go freely, and others need to actually be kind to each other. Perhaps – when we’ve failed to listen to humans tell us this – an animated bear is the only voice that can get the message across.
Paddington in Peru review score: 4/5
Yes, an animated movie CAN be both brilliant and full of fault at the same time, and Paddington in Peru is one of the better examples of that. You might have started watching thinking about the logistics and underpinning meanings, but by the end, your brain has been emptied of anything other than the Browns – and that’s an incredibly rare feat.
If you’re going to expose yourself to twee, this is the franchise to pick. Even if you disagree with the nuts and bolts of the threequel, King’s trilogy is well-crafted for all ages, and that’s enough reason to part with your hard-earned cash. Definitely not better than Paddington 2 though, sorry.
Paddington in Peru comes to UK cinemas on November 8, and US cinemas on January 17, 2025. For more, check out the best anime live-action adaptations and the latest on upcoming films like the Snow White remake and the live-action How to Train Your Dragon.
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