Christopher Robin is less a celebration of childhood innocence than an inquest into parental guilt.

Disney’s latest live-action reinterpretation of its hallowed back catalogue is also easily one of its most muddled, despite the fact it’s treading a very similar path to the one “Hook” forged nearly thirty years ago.

All grown up, Christopher Robin (Ewan McGregor) is married with a daughter yet spends all his time at work, under the supercilious and exploitatively chummy Giles Winslow (Mark Gatiss) When Winslow demands that he work through the weekend on a plan to save the business by sacking his colleagues, Christopher Robin must disappoint his wife Evelyn (Hayley Attwell) and daughter Madeline (Bronte Charmichael) once again. But when they head to the country, Christopher Robin receives a most unexpected visitor.

There’s a real discomfort to the opening hour of “Christopher Robin” as it seeks to examine what has become of Pooh’s best friend in the intervening years. There’s a melancholy edge to it that borders on bleakness with some sequences tiptoeing on the edge of nightmarishly miserable. It’s enough to make you question who exactly this film is meant to be for? The faithful character design of Pooh and friends seems to suggest it’s aimed for children but its too dark and too unhappy to really engage with younger viewers, who might very well get restless long before the film rewards their patience.

The whimsy inherent in the tales of the Hundred Acre Wood sits uncomfortably against the self-imposed purgatory Christopher Robin finds himself stuck in and there’s no denying the bleak truth behind the charming fables, as told in last year’s “Goodbye Christopher Robin” is the spectre at the feast, making each low that much deeper and darker while blunting the highs. It’s particularly telling that Christopher Robin seems instantly more comfortable in Eeyore’s company than in Pooh’s as the film reaches its crucial turning point.

That turning point sees the film undergo a transformation when Pooh, Eeyore, Piglet and Tigger link up with Madeline. It comes alive in more ways than one and there’s a sudden rush of warmth, helping to deliver the charming, heart-warming magical tale this should be.

The overall effect is like two different films joined together and when the focus switches to Madeline and her adventures with Pooh and the gang, it’s so much warmer and better. This should have been her story from the beginning rather than using her as an afterthought to pivot away from the movie’s depressing opening. As it is, you’ll still come out of this feeling all warm and fuzzy but, like Christopher Robin himself, you won’t be able to shake the feeling you’ve wasted a lot of time focussed on the wrong things.

christopher robin review
Score 6/10


Hi there! If you enjoyed this post, why not sign up to get new posts sent straight to your inbox?

Sign up to receive a weekly digest of The Craggus' latest posts.

We don’t spam! Read our privacy policy for more info.

logo

Related posts

The Incredible Hulk Returns (1988) Review

The Incredible Hulk Returns (1988) Review

Craggnarok begins! The Road To Ragnarok Part 1: The Incredible Hulk Returns Way, way back before 2012’s “Avengers Assemble”, The Hulk and Thor came face to face in “The Incredible Hulk Returns”, the first in a trilogy of TV movies reviving the much-loved show. David Banner (Bill...

Avengers: Age Of Ultron (2015) Review

Avengers: Age Of Ultron (2015) Review

My Avengers: Age Of Ultron review would have words with thee It’s strange to think that it’s nearly been a year since we last visited the main Marvel Cinematic Universe. Sure, we had the awesome cosmic sidestep of “Guardians Of The Galaxy” but (for now) that remains distanced...

Godzilla vs Kong (2021) Review

Godzilla vs Kong (2021) Review

Godzilla Vs Kong finally brings us a big-screen showdown where whoever loses, the audience wins. There’s something reassuringly predictable about GODZILLA vs KONG, an adherence to convention that lets you stop worrying about some out-of-left-field twist or clever subversion and...

Assassination Nation (2018) Review

Assassination Nation (2018) Review

Check your privacy settings before you wreck your privacy settings. A screeching, graphic howl of incendiary exasperation, “Assassination Nation” adds its voice to the growing chorus of furious condemnation of a society dominated by toxic masculinity, religious hypocrisy and venal...

A Christmas Carol (2009) Review

A Christmas Carol (2009) Review

Bah, humbug! Robert Zemeckis returns to Christmas animation with his take on another popular festive tale. Thankfully, unlike “The Polar Express”, with “A Christmas Carol” he doesn’t feel the need to add a whole bunch of stuff that isn’t in the book to pad it out. It doesn’t stop him...

Soul (2020) Review

Soul (2020) Review

Big swing Pixar is the best Pixar. It’s a matter of personal cinematic irony that I first watched “Soul”, Pixar’s paean to mindfulness and being fully in the moment, in the post-Christmas Dinner tryptophan-infused haze of contentment. I may even have dozed off for a few minutes here or...

Bill (2015) Review

Bill (2015) Review

There’s nothing horrible about this historical romp… Written by and starring the cast of “Yonderland”, “Bill” sees them returning to their “Horrible Histories” roots and exploring a ‘lost’ era of Shakespeare’s life, finally revealing the true story behind his rise to fame and fortune as...

Kraven The Hunter (2024) Review

Kraven The Hunter (2024) Review

Kraven the Hunter skips over his Newsround and Countryfile days and gets straight to the supervillainy. No studio in the history of movie making has managed to establish the kind of track record that Sony has in its handling of its Spider-Man-less live action Spider-Man Universe...