Rent Paddington 2 (2017)
4.0 of 5 from 1356 ratings
1h 39min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
- The much-anticipated sequel finds Paddington happily settled with the Brown family in Windsor Gardens. While searching for the perfect present for his beloved Aunt Lucy's 100th birthday, Paddington spots a unique pop-up book in Mr. Gruber's antique shop, and embarks upon a series of odd jobs to buy it. But when the book is stolen, it's up to Paddington and the Browns to unmask the thief...
- Actors:
- Hugh Grant, Hugh Bonneville, Madeleine Harris, Samuel Joslin, Sally Hawkins, Julie Walters, Marie-France Alvarez, Sanjeev Bhaskar, Ben Miller, Jessica Hynes, Robbie Gee, Nicholas Woodeson, Alex Jordan, Stewart Gilchrist, Jim Broadbent, Enzo Squillino Jr., Tom Conti, Sam Payne, Catherine Shepherd, Louis Partridge
- Directors:
- Paul King
- Producers:
- David Heyman
- Voiced By:
- Ben Whishaw, Michael Gambon, Imelda Staunton, John Shearer
- Creators:
- Michael Bond
- Writers:
- Paul King, Simon Farnaby
- Others:
- David Heyman
- Studio:
- StudioCanal
- Genres:
- Action & Adventure, Children & Family, Comedy
- Collections:
- 10 Films to Watch If You Like: Jonathan Livingston Seagull, 2018, A Brief History of Cinema Afloat: Part 3, A Brief History of the Golden Age of Children's TV: Puppets and Animation, Behind Bars: Visit These Essential Prison Films, Children & Family, Children's Books On Screen: Family Classics & YA, CinemaParadiso.co.uk Through Time, Films & TV by topic, Remembering Michael Gambon, A Brief History of Film..., Top Films, What to Watch Next If You Liked Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 12/03/2018
- Run Time:
- 104 minutes
- Languages:
- English Audio Description, English Dolby Atmos
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Widescreen 2.39:1
- Colour:
- Colour
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- Director's Commentary
- 'Rain on the Roof' with Phoenix Buchanan - Full Screen
- Paddington 2: The Challenges of Making the Film
- BAFTA Q&A with David Heyman, Paul King, Simon Farnaby, Hugh Grant and Pablo Grillo
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 12/03/2018
- Run Time:
- 104 minutes
- Languages:
- English Audio Description, English Dolby Atmos
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- DVD Regions:
- Region 2
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Widescreen 2.39:1
- Colour:
- Colour
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- (0) All
- Bonus:
- Director's Commentary
- 'Rain on the Roof' with Phoenix Buchanan - Full Screen
- Paddington 2: The Challenges of Making the Film
- BAFTA Q&A with Cast and Crew
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Reviews (13) of Paddington 2
Absolutely brilliant! - Paddington 2 review by MH
This is a terrific film, every bit as good as the first. The animation is truly inspired (check out especially the pop-up book), the characters are true to the original film, and Paddington is just as lovable.
It would be a scrooge indeed who didn't enjoy this film! I saw it at the cinema, and when the lights went up the (largely mature) audience all had a soppy grin on their faces. Tip - watch it right to the end or you may miss some fun.
4 out of 4 members found this review helpful.
Very derivative but enjoyable cartoony caper which owes a lot to silent film and slapstick - Paddington 2 review by PV
First to say that the animation in this movie is simply superb - imaginative, as it has to be really, to prop up a very flimsy and thin story and plot. The film is interspersed with a series of vignettes, some of which are lifted directly from silent films and Laurel and Hardy - some really old gags here! Plus other derivative bits too - the nod to Oliver when the bear confronts the chef; the nod to The Producers and how that classic movie musical ends in the prison bit at the end (stay watching through the end credits).
Now the stuff I didn't like: 1) the music is truly awful - I dislike the silly calypso band with its mediocre songs - it would have been far better to update classic songs such as 'When I'm Cleaning Windows'; 2) the London of this movie is sheer fantasy - a cartoon land where everyone lives in Georgian houses which are worth between £3 and £5 MILLION pounds - the books are better on this, with the Brown family living in an average semi which could be a council house! and that leads to 3) the problem with this as with the first film is that it is aimed squarely at an international audience, so in this London everyone is rich and lives in lovely big houses and it snows all the time (when it hardly ever does in London) which is as fake as the first movie claiming it rains all the time in London (in fact Rome has more annual rainfall!)
The caper is enjoyable though and heart-warming - it follows the text-book screenplay pattern: plot point one in minute 24; a sad lull of failure just before plot point 2 leads to act 3 and a happy ending which is assumed in movies like this (they're hardly all gonna die horribly).
Hugh Grant steals the show from a bear if that's possible! Which just goes to show if your career dips, just hang around a decade or more and it'll flower again!
So 4 stars. Not perfect, but an enjoyable cartoony caper. Some great character actors in here too, esp Jim Broadbent with the wonderful Jewish character not in the original books (though I get tired of the endless Scottish characters).
But why oh why so they have to show that awful shard building all the time as if it's something we Brits and Londoners are proud of - because we most certainly are not! It's an eyesore.
I still prefer the books though!
2 out of 6 members found this review helpful.
A lovely film for all ages - Paddington 2 review by Maureen
This film is a sheer delight. You have to suspend disbelief, because if you analyse it most of it is impossible, but you don't even think like that, because you're having so much fun. Members of our family who've seen it range from 30 plus to 90 plus and we all had a really good time. There's no point in analysing it too much as it starts with the totally impossible premise that a bear can talk. If you haven't seen it, just do so and you'll thoroughly enjoy it.
1 out of 1 members found this review helpful.
Critic review
Paddington 2 review by Mark McPherson - Cinema Paradiso
Many storybook characters can lose their way when translated for the big screen, but not Paddington. His gentle and good-natured personality doesn’t become lost in his CGI form; he may have even improved from such a transition. As he proved in his 2014 live-action debut, you can have a film with talking animals and slapstick humor that doesn’t have to sacrifice intelligence or wit. The sequel only proves his charm can last.
Having successfully moved in with the Brown family, Paddington (voiced by Ben Whishaw) has undoubtedly made his mark in the London community. Not only has the neighborhood become accepting of a talking bear on their block, but their lives are all the better. Paddington seems to find the good in everyone and help them better themselves, delivering marmalade sandwiches for the morning bike riders and helping sanitation workers study on their way to work. He still gets into trouble, as seen in a barber shop sequences of Buster Keaton style mishaps, but it’s usually just bad luck and never with malicious intent.
Missing his aunt, Paddington decides to set about acquiring a special present for his auntie’s birthday; “It’s not every day a bear turns 100.” He has set his sights on an antique pop-up book of London that happens to cost a hefty sum of currency. No matter; Paddington takes the honest route by getting a job to raise the money for the present. Unfortunately, a deceptive over-the-hill actor, Phoenix Buchanan (Hugh Grant), has stolen the book and framed Paddington for the crime. While the bear is stuck in prison, the Browns set about trying to prove that Phoenix was the culprit.
As this story goes along, we discover that Paddington not only pushes for the best in people but that the world itself is whimsical enough to accept his sweetness. This is best seen in Paddington’s questioning of the prison food, having a word with the prisoner chef, Knuckles (Brendan Gleeson). Though Knuckles is bitter and easily prone to speak with his fists, he retracts his knuckle sandwich when Paddington fills his mouth with a marmalade sandwich. The two of them start making more marmalade sandwiches for the prison and not only does a relationship form, but a more refined prison life changes the tone of the big house. If it weren’t for the Browns waiting for him on the outside, there would be no reason to leave such a fun enclosure with colorful characters that all seem to have a recipe for some decadent sweet.
For as likable a force as Paddington continues to be, it’s ultimately Hugh Grant that steals the show. His role as a washed-up, egotistical, and maniacal actor is not only the best performance of the film but maybe his best role he’s ever had. Everything from his toothy expression that can make a room shine to his fanciful means of being evil with his acting abilities is a lot of fun to watch. Be sure to stay during the credits for the most elaborate musical number featuring Grant at his most amusing.
But what’s perhaps the most enjoyable aspect of Paddington 2 is that every actor seems to be having a lot of fun and it shows on the screen. Peter Capaldi returns as the grumpy Mr. Curry, eager to prove Paddington as the menace of the neighborhood, going so far as to alert the public in the middle of the night when the bear escapes from prison. Jim Broadbent is still as sweet as ever as the kindly old German antique shop owner. Hugh Bonneville is still in top form as the straight man trying to find reason in this whimsical world, given more to do this time around and able to hold his own without standing next to the CGI bear. Even the smaller roles of Joanna Lumley as a talent agent and Richard Ayoade as a forensics expert manage to be entertaining players for the singular scenes they occupy.
I adored Paddington 2 at the initial screening but was curious to see how more kids would react a more public screening. Not only were kids laughing along with Paddington’s accidental nature and getting involved in the treasure hunting story, but I have never seen a theater of more behaved kids, including my own. For this reason, I can’t recommend this film enough as the perfect family film, expertly conceived to be as hilariously creative as it is thoughtfully sweet.