REVIEW: PADDINGTON IN PERU

3.5/5

The Bear Necessities 

106 Mins. Starring: Hugh Bonneville, Emily Mortimer, Julie Walters, Jim Broadbent, Carla Tous, Hayley Atwell, Olivia Colman, Antonio Banderas & Ben Whishaw as the voice of 'Paddington'. Screenplay: Mark Burton, Jon Foster & James Lamont. Director: Dougal Wilson. In: Theatres and on Streaming.

Let me tell you, there is nothing quite like a British Summer. Late last June I came home from Japan to surprise my parents six months after our New Year in New York. During my week, I felt the warmth of reunions with family and friends and also the bearable heat of the great British summertime (humidity in the Land of the Rising Sun is no joke). Not to mention the seasonal U.K. traditions of Wimbledon and Glastonbury...on the telly, of course. Flying in to London's Stansted from Tokyo, I made sure to stay in my favourite place for the first night. Paddington. A place that feels so familiar because of its lovely community, a budget hotel that does a great Full English, a local Italian that was kind enough to say "next time" when I didn't have enough for a tip (I really need to go back), and of course the station's official mascot, the Peruvian bear in a red hat and blue duffle coat. Although I'm yet to find a place for breakfast that does a great marmalade sandwich.

English summers are just something else. Besides, you won't get soaked in sweat like Hugh Grant's character when he does the prison laundry. You could probably even wear a duffle coat some nights. That's the British Isles for ya. Back home also doesn't get movies late, as much as I love it here in the Far East. Michael Bond's bear with a suitcase is coming home too in 'Paddington In Peru', albeit six months late here. The trilogy is complete with a fourth film on the way, and what better place to bring it to than the fluffy Brown bear's Peruvian motherland? This directorial debut from Dougal Wilson (many a heart-warming John Lewis ad and Coldplay's Grammy nominated 'Life In Technicolor II' music video), with a script from Mark Burton, Jon Foster and James Lamont, sees 007's Q, Ben Whishaw's warmly voiced bear visit him homeland after his maternal Aunt Lucy misses him dearly. Well, isn't that lovely?

Just you wait for a film that has more famous faces in this franchise than Paddington streets have Paddington merchandise in their local newsagents. 'Downton Abbey's' always game Hugh Boneville leads the way with his family, but this time he is joined by the great Emily Mortimer, who replaces 'The Shape Of Water' star Sally Hawkins in character. Hawkins decided to step down and hand Mrs. Brown to the "truly wonderful" and "extraordinarily special" Mrs. Mortimer. So Sally can wait, and as much as she is missed, Emily is just lovely in this movie. Alongside the legendary likes of Jim Broadbent and Julie Walters comes even more star power with the iconic Olivia Colman, playing it up as a nun for a bear's retirement home. Yet, even she has the show stolen from her from the one and only Antonio Banderas, doing the same he did in very different movies like 'Baby Girl' and 'The Expendables 3', for some split-personality, hamming it up on the open water as a riverboat captain.

Carla Tous also makes a name for herself as his daughter, replacing 'Snow White' Rachel Zegler, after the 'West Side Story' star couldn't commit during the SAGA strike. 'Agent Carter', or Captain Britain Hayley Atwell even shows up (as an American) to lead a bunch of classic cameos all the way down to the credits. Yet it's the marmalade footprints left from the photo booth to passport control that will really have you howling. This jungle book may throw a lot at you, even an 'Indiana Jones' like boulder, twice over. But it still hits. Even if some of the charm is missing, and we're not talking about absentees like Hawkins. It's fun for the whole family, from Paddington to Peru, and the kids will love it. Influenced by Werner Herzog films and Inca Mythology, 'Paddington in Peru' takes us even deeper. There's even an Easter Egg touching tribute to both Bond and Queen Elizabeth II, after her tea and marmalade sandwiches with Paddington during her Platinum Jubilee. This one's for you, Ma'am. TIM DAVID HARVEY.

Further Filming: 'Paddington', 'Paddington 2', 'Mary Poppins Returns'.