Paddington in Peru movie review

MOVIE TITLE: Paddington in Peru

This cute, family-friendly film released in English in November 2024, but doesn’t release to the rest of the world until January 17, 2025.

RATING: PG

LENGTH: 1 hour 46 minutes

Movie Review Mom GRADE: A

SPONSOR of Today’s movie review:

Standing plush Paddington (on Amazon)

Link: https://amzn.to/3AWSOAa

IN A NUTSHELL:

The beloved Paddington bear returns to his homeland of Peru to visit his beloved Aunt Lucy, who now resides at the Home for Retired Bears. With the Brown family in tow, a thrilling adventure ensues when a mystery plunges them into an unexpected journey.

The adorable adventure was directed by Dougal Wilson as his directorial debut! Paul King had directed the two previous Paddington movies, but decided to just be an executive producer this time around. Writing credits go to Mark Burton, Jon Foster, and James Lamont.

One of my sons was traveling through South America recently, so I was going to meet him in Peru. Climbing up to Machu Pichu has been on my Bucket List forever! Unfortunately, he got robbed after only 2 days in Lima and was a bit traumatized by it, so he jumped on a plane to fly home and I canceled my trip. Drats!

THINGS I LIKED:

The cast is fantastic and includes British favorites: Hugh Bonneville, Emily Mortimer, Imelda Staunton, Joel Fry, Hayley Atwell, Antonio Banderas, Julie Walters, Jim Broadbent, and Hugh Grant, among others.
Academy Award winner Olivia Colman plays a “suspicious” and smiely, singing nun who is hilarious. I’ve been such a fan of hers for years. I love her in everything she does.
Ben Whishaw voices the charming Paddington.
Paddington bear is based on the spectacled bear, which is also called the Andean bear, the only bear species in Peru.
There is so much spoken and visual humor. Similar to the first movies in this trilogy, there is a lot of slapstick, physical humor.
There are quite a few amusing details and even a respectful nod to the author of the Paddington book, Michael Bond: we see his face on a stamp.
We get to spend some time in Peru! Specifically, Cuzco and Machu Pichu were filmed on their actual sites. Because the country of Colombia offered special deals to film there, most of the jungle shots were done there. I spent some time in Colombia and was so impressed with its beauty! Apparently, the film industry in Peru was not happy about that, as well as the fact that the retired bear home was actually filmed in England!
Lots of action and shenanigans.
Keep watching during the final rolling credits at the end of the movie to see a cute scene when Paddington visits Hugh Grant’s character (the villain in the 2017 movie Paddington 2).
There is a lot of CGI with the bears; however, everything looks really good and believable in a whimsical way.
There’s a cute, funny twist.

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:

The movie is definitely better than the trailer. True Paddington fans are saying this is the weakest film in the franchise.
Academy Award winner Sally Hawkins decided not to reprise her role as Mrs. Brown. I thought Emily Mortimer did a fantastic job!
This is the first Paddington movie that doesn’t include Mr. Curry layed by Peter Capaldi.
There is quite a bit of exposition to explain past events and motivation.
Tarantulas! EEK!

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

Some Spanish is spoken without subtitles.
People and bears are in perilous situations.
No profanity. Yay!
Everyone’s faces look humorously horrified when a man lifts up his shirt, although we don’t actually see what they’re seeing.

THEMES:

Embrace the risk
Going home and exploring your roots
Family is the most valuable treasure
Trust
El Dorado
Greed
Reinventing your future
Embracing the mixed parts of yourself

FUNNY LINES:

When Mrs. Brown sees Antonio Banderas’ character, she says, “Oh, what a handsome…” – Mrs. Brown “Hmmm?” – Mr. Brown “Boat.” – Mrs. Brown
“It’s called a hard stare. And it’s for when people have forgotten their manners and the important things.” – Paddington (Ben Whishaw)

INTERESTING LINES:

“What happens next?” – Mary Brown (Emily Mortimer)
“All you have to do is embrace the risk.” – Madison (Hayley Atwell)
“All it takes to light the darkness is one candle of faith.” – Reverend Mother (Olivia Coleman)
“Can’t you see that it is YOU who are lost.” – Aunt Lucy (Imelda Staunton)
“Some risks are worth embracing, but only if they’re for the greater good and for the people you love.” – Mr. Brown (Hugh Bonneville)