Paddington in Peru review: Non-stop fun with surprises aplenty
This time, it’s not the bear out of place, but the family, as Paddington travels back to his ancestral home.
Let’s cut to the chase: Paddington in Peru isn’t quite as good as its two predecessors, but it comes pretty close.
When you’re trying to match two of the most beloved and acclaimed family films of recent times, falling a little short is no cause for hard stares, because this is still a film that’s all kind of non-stop fun.
This time, it’s not the bear out of place, but the family, as Paddington travels back to his ancestral home of Peru.
His travels are prompted by a message from the Mother superior (Olivia Colman) at the Home For Retired Bears in Peru, where Paddington’s Aunt Lucy resides.
Apparently Aunt Lucy is not herself, so the Browns arrange a hasty visit en masse – Mrs Brown (now played by Emily Mortimer) decides it’s a last chance for her to bond with her children before they leave home, and Mr Brown (Hugh Bonneville) sees it as a chance to prove to his bosses that he’s a risk taker.
It’s not quite clear why Mrs Bird (Julie Walters) tags along, too, but be glad she does, as she gets two of the film’s biggest laughs and is hilarious in every scene she shares with Colman.
When Paddington and co arrive in Peru, Aunt Lucy has gone missing. However, she’s left a clue that sends them on a perilous mission into the jungle to find her.
From there it’s a pretty episodic plot, though blessed with a great twist as regards the villain of the piece — the shady, gold-seeking boat captain Hunter Cabot (Antonio Banderas).
Moving the action to Peru was a risk for a franchise that derived a lot of its charm from the very Britishness of its background characters and setting (viewers of a certain vintage might shudder at the potential of a Holiday on the Buses scenario).
However, it all turns out okay. The film certainly isn’t left wanting for Britishness – Bonneville alone makes sure of that (his "take me seriously" walk through a jungle village is embarrassingly spot on).
Olivia Colman is an irrepressibly chirpy singing nun, and there are also vengeful ghosts, llama-back escapes from massive Indiana Jones-style boulders, Buster Keaton homages and purple-kneed tarantulas. And beneath all the screwball comedy, a sweet story about embracing multiculturalism and parents having to cope with their children taking flight.
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Incoming director Dougal Wilson (replacing Paul King) ensures that, in terms of inventive comic moments, the film rarely lets up. The Paddington-caused slapstick mayhem scenes aren’t as ambitious, extensive and memorable as in the previous films, but the musical moment is a peach, and there are great little side-splitting gems a-plenty and some hilarious cameos.
Sure, the combination of charm, human story and crackerjack comedy feels a little less effortlessly organic this time and a little more calculated. But that’s only by a matter of degrees.
Paddington in Peru is a feel-good movie that leaves you feeling very good indeed. And that’s even before the priceless end-credits extra scene delivers one last surprise.
Paddington in Peru will be released on Friday 8th November 2024.
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