Honestly, I didn’t see the first Paddington so I had nothing to go on, outside of the fact that I knew Paddington was a talking bear. After seeing Paddington 2, I didn’t feel like I missed out on any part of the storyline by not seeing part one. Although it’s a sequel, this movie can definitely stand-alone.
"If we're kind and polite, the world will be right," says the big-hearted bear in the oversized red hat.
This movie follows Paddington Brown (Ben Whishaw), who is kind in every way. He’s polite, a giver, and just loves doing the right thing. Paddington’s aunt is turning 100 years old and he wants to buy her a picture book of London from Mr. Gruber's antique shop. Unfortunately, it’s $1000, which he is about $1000 short! This prompts Paddington to get a job. When working for someone doesn’t work out, he starts his own window cleaning business and makes enough money to buy the book. The night before he plans to buy the book, he joins his family at a neighborhood fair. He shares his plans with the Grand Marshall of the fair, Phoenix Buchanan (Hugh Grant), about the book and where to find it. The next night, he witnesses a robbery at Mr. Gruber’s store and tries to stop the thief. Instead, Paddington is framed for the robbery.
He is sentenced to 10 years in jail. This is the part that I felt was kind of harsh for a children’s movie. Putting a bear in an adult situation that 99.9% of children won’t find themselves in. The movie then goes on to show how his family tries to prove his innocence, and find the real thief as Paddington adjust to life behind bars.
Five super-quick lessons Paddington gives us:
- Don’t tell everyone your business Paddington shared where his book was and it ended up being stolen and putting him in jail. Some things you need to keep to yourself and just let people see the finished product. Everyone doesn’t need to know everything.
- Being kind is never wrong I love that Paddington was kind even when people were rude to him. He shows that you have the power to control your actions at all times. Many times when we have a great attitude in a bad situation, it changes the atmosphere.
- Don’t be afraid to speak your truth Paddington hated the food in prison, but the other prisoners were afraid to speak up for fear of being hurt. Paddington told the truth and ended up changing the menu and the heart of top man in charge.
- Fight for what’s right Paddington’s family knew in their hearts that he was innocent. They continued to do the work to bring Paddington home when it seemed like all odds were against them. Sometimes when we fight for what we believe in, we might be fighting alone. When it’s worth it, it won’t matter who does or doesn’t stand beside us.
- We’re all at different stages of life, but we will figure it out Throughout the movie, the Brown family members were going through their own individual life situations. We don’t always understand why things happen to us, but if we work through it, we always end up figuring things out. The key is to not stop learning and growing.
Your children will enjoy this movie — and walk away wanting orange marmalade!
Bernetta Knighten is a lifestyle content creator at bernettastyle.com. She a married mom of three great children and resides in the Tampa Bay area. Follow her on Instagram or Facebook.
This article appears in Jan 25 – Feb 1, 2018.