The primary “Paddington” film arrived with low expectations, first after Colin Firth departed the titular position, and later when the primary trailers threatened a “Sonic the Hedgehog” stage CGI monstrosity. And but, that film received audiences over, earlier than director Paul King delivered a sequel that could be a excellent film by each metric as subjective as a Rotten Tomatoes rating, or as goal because the phrase of Nicolas Cage.
Sadly, evidently when King determined to make “Wonka” as a substitute of one other “Paddington” film, he took all of the magic with him, leaving solely a “story by” credit score for newcomer Dougal Wilson (in his function directorial debut) and his cohort of writers (Mark Burton, Jon Foster, and James Lamont) to choose up. Wilson’s job of following a masterpiece regardless of the lack of the unique creator and one of many principal stars of the movie (Sally Hawkins, right here changed by Emily Mortimer), was unimaginable. Sadly, the result’s the “worst” of the three motion pictures to date, a merely first rate “Paddington” film — a fairly excessive customary that might imply a tremendous movie in most different family-friendly franchises.
It isn’t like “Paddington in Peru” is with out advantage or promise. The beginning of the movie encompasses a pleasant Charlie Chaplin-inspired gag the place Paddington tries to take a passport picture in a photograph sales space that evokes the magnificent rest room sequence in first film. Lastly, after who is aware of what sort of magical hoops (it does not damage, maybe, that he additionally has a photograph with the late Queen Elizabeth II in his room), Paddington is a British citizen, and has the passport to show it. Nonetheless, the bear hasn’t precisely forgotten the place he got here from — Darkest Peru, right here merely known as Peru — which is the place the center of the movie actually lies together with its largest points.
Paddington in Peru squanders its message
The concept of residence being not essentially the place you are from however the place you might be is a pleasant thought, and resonant with the remainder of the trilogy’s concepts on immigrant tales, however the message is rarely totally cooked in “Paddington in Peru.” Paddington does not even have the thought himself, he’s actually informed the message by another person. What’s extra, the second Paddington receives his passport within the mail, he’s welcomed in by a pleasant, photogenic group of facet characters, most of them folks of shade, exhibiting a fairly idealistic imaginative and prescient of the U.Ok. as a pleasing residence of individuals of all cultures and backgrounds — which is the “Paddington” means. The issue is that that is basically the final time we see any folks of shade with any dialogue in anyway.
That is fairly dumbfounding as a result of the story takes place primarily in Peru. Somewhat missing in stakes, the movie kicks off when Paddington receives an pressing letter from Reverend Mom (Olivia Colman, by far the most effective motive to observe this movie) saying that expensive Aunt Lucy is lacking. What’s extra, she’s out on some “type of quest,” which conjures up the Brown household to go collectively to Peru to search out Aunt Lucy and take one final likelihood at spending time as a household earlier than their daughter Judy goes off to school.
What follows is an journey deep into the Amazon on board a ship owned by Hunter Cabot (Antonio Banderas, doing an amusing mix of Fitzcarraldo and Gollum). Regardless of what the title could suggest, there may be little within the movie that feels Peruvian. Aside from some photographs of Latino background characters waving the great white folks hey, in addition to some llamas, the movie may need to idiot you into pondering that London has extra folks of shade than South America.
Paddington in Peru is an underwhelming journey
This can be a disgrace, as a result of it reduces the movie’s immigration story and themes into only a fantasy. Paddington could say he is from Peru, however the movie makes it very clear he’s only a magical creature from a magical, fictional land with no resemblance to the true world, which makes his being embraced by family and friends in London, and at last changing into a citizen only a fairy story.
The dearth of a Peruvian, or perhaps a grounded Latino look or really feel to the film additionally seems like a missed alternative as a result of it avoids the fish-out-of-water tone that made the primary two “Paddington” motion pictures so enjoyable and particular. Regardless of having a traditional sitcom trope of throwing an extraordinary household into an journey in an unique land, the Browns do not actually work together with something Peruvian, however fairly exoticize all the nation by simply specializing in how harmful the world outdoors of London is, just like the jungle and the bugs. The closest the household involves interacting with the locals is when the dad, Henry Brown (Hugh Bonneville), retains being spooked by Amazonian spiders.
Talking of the jungle, “Paddington in Peru” trades metropolis whimsy for a jungle journey, however fairly than “Indiana Jones,” this feels extra just like the latest “Jungle Cruise” film, with uninspired sound stage units that make the vastness of the Amazon really feel small. Nonetheless, there are some good moments. Olivia Colman is improbable, notably throughout an early musical quantity that spirals uncontrolled. There are additionally some inspiring animated sequences and some slapstick moments proper out of A Buster Keaton film. Although “Paddington in Peru” has some evident points, simply seeing these characters collectively once more makes for a enjoyable time, and seeing actors like Colman and Banderas make large decisions of their performances that vary on caricature is amusing — even when they by no means match the power of Hugh Grant in “Paddington 2.” “Paddington in Peru” is in the end a missed alternative, however it’s additionally a pleasing, entertaining-enough time.
/Movie Score: 6 out of 10
“Paddington in Peru” is now out in cinemas within the U.Ok., earlier than opening in American theaters on January 17, 2025.