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January 12, 2018

At the Movies: ‘Paddington 2' is simply wonderful

AP Film Writer

“Paddington 2 “ is that rare creation that somehow improves on its already charming predecessor.



Paddington gets a mission when he spots a London pop-up book at an antique store that he thinks would be perfect to buy his Aunt Lucy (voiced by Imelda Staunton), who is still in Peru and has always dreamed of going to London (pretty thoughtful for an anthropomorphized bear). But, it's expensive and he needs to get a job in order to afford it. It's an easy set up for some hijinks as he tries and fails at a few things. In a film that feels so effortless, this is a rare snag that's a little forced and chaotic. Thankfully it's all building to something better, which is not coincidentally related to the arrival of Hugh Grant.



Director: Paul King

Cast: Hugh Grant, Ben Whishaw

Rating: PG

Running time: 103 minutes

Pretty dark for a Paddington movie, sure, but King keeps it light and positive (this is perhaps the brightest and cleanest prison you've ever seen on screen). And Paddington quickly charms his fellow inmates and the grouchy chef who doesn't know that Knuckles begins with a K and not an N.


Sally Hawkins also gets a nice spotlight as the eager-to-believe matriarch who is compelling enough to make you really trust that she's possibly gotten a lead from a newsstand parrot about who framed Paddington.

Is it too lame to get wrapped up in the messages in a kid's film? “Paddington 2” has a lot of worthy ones — the importance of kindness, family, and, heck, even saving money to get a thoughtful gift for someone who means something to you.

It is a cheerful, sweet movie, where there is no problem that a lovingly made marmalade sandwich won't fix, and it'll be sure to leave kids and adults smiling and even wiping a few tears away at the end.

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