SPOILER-FREE REVIEW
It lacks depth, but Christopher Robin’s simplicity is a strength, giving it charm and childhood magic to spare.
Maybe the best thing about Christopher Robin is how it gives off a comfort food feeling. It’s a film that features copious amounts of honey, both metaphorically and literally. It’s a sweet family film, made for kids who’ve grown up as well as children, with the usual message of how we don’t spend enough time with our loved ones. Don’t expect plot twists or subtlety. The people behind this film have chosen to keep things simple, and that’s Christopher Robin’s strength.
The film follows a grown up Christopher Robin (Ewan McGregor), no longer the boy who spent his days playing with Pooh and friends in the Hundred Acre Wood. Now a middle-aged married father, Christopher is trapped in the rat race, working at a struggling luggage company with his colleagues, all of whom are at the whims of their comically upper-class boss Giles Winslow (Mark Gatiss). Christopher’s wife Evelyn (Hayley Atwell) and daughter Madeline (Bronte Carmichael) are kept at a distance by Christopher’s seemingly endless list of work-related responsibilities. On the same weekend that Christopher’s plans to take his family on holiday are spoiled, Pooh encounters a problem of his own. His friends in the Hundred Acre Wood have vanished, and Pooh makes the journey to London to get Christopher’s help.
It’s a predictable story fitting a simple family film, but Christopher Robin has an understated charm that shouldn’t be ignored. It strikes a balance between melancholy and a kind of cheerful fun. It wants to remind grown ups to spend more time with their families and remember to look inward on occasion to find their inner child. Yes, it’s quite on the nose, and it's a message that Disney has tried to get across many times, but Christopher Robin has a kind of charm to it that means you don’t mind the repetition so much. For kids, it’s a comedy. For adults, it’s an all-important introspective affair, encouraging you to question the rat race and the direction of your life. It’s a film that has something important to say, and communicates it well.
Where does this movie’s charm come from? From both its human characters and its CGI stuffed animals in equal measure, that’s where. Out of all the humans, the star here is Ewan McGregor’s Christopher Robin. At times, he seems to be the only person who thinks that the return of his stuffed animal friends is unusual and it’s played for laughs. McGregor plays the part of the overworked working-class man with little time for his family well. His interactions with his daughter Madeline have a kind of funny awkwardness to them, echoing how little time they’ve actually spent together. McGregor and Bronte Carmichael, who plays Madeline, have a great father-daughter dynamic where she tries her best to bond with him despite his work focus. It’s a shame that the same can’t really be said for Evelyn, who’s just sort of…there, tragically underusing Hayley Atwell in the process.
A massive shout out to Jim Cummings, who voices Pooh and Tigger. Thanks to him, Pooh takes on a life of his own, capturing the casual endearing clumsiness of everyone’s favourite animated bear. His lines are relatively simple, but the way they’re delivered, they take on an almost-philosophical quality. In fact, Pooh is the most watchable part of this movie, for kids and adults alike. Tigger’s return is also incredibly faithful, and the way he speaks and sings has absolutely been nailed down. Special mention also goes out to Brad Garrett who lends a distinct sedate, drawn-out voice to Eeyore. The entire voice cast deserves your praise. Also, don’t worry about your kids being scared of bad CGI caricatures of Pooh and friends. The guys and girls in visual design have managed to make them look like real stuffed toys come to life.
The plot can be a little simple. Without spoiling it, the whole film comes to a conclusion that feels a little too contrived, even for a family film. It’s nice, but it’s too convenient, too easy, to feel realistic. The filmmakers may have gone a little too far, trading some realism for a picture-perfect ending. Other than that, Christopher Robin’s strength is in its simplicity. It’s not saying anything new, but I didn’t find myself caring that I’d heard its message before. If you want to spend a couple of hours looking for a bit of childhood magic on a rainy Sunday afternoon, this is the film for you. Now, the only question: has Eeyore always been this relatable?
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