Christopher Robin short on plot, long on feels

Piglet, Pooh, Rabbit, Roo, Kanga, Tigger, and Eeyore in Christopher Robin. Image courtesy Disney

Christopher Robin never gets around to justifying its existence. From the outset, there was not a notable or interesting reason to revisit the titular boy after his adventures with Winnie-the-Pooh and friends concluded. He is defined by the innocence of his childhood and the curiosity that comes with it, as shown through his admittedly odd collection of anthropomorphic friends, and an adult version removes the childhood wonderment. As a result, the movie is pretty unexceptional, a term that is part insult and part compliment for a franchise in which the greatest adventures lie in the quotidian Ultimately, the disappointments of the movie's story are more than compensated for by the tale of friendship and the congenial tone that results in many smiles upon one's face.

Ewan McGregor stars as the eponymous character, now somewhere in his 30s and working as a bean counter at a luxury luggage company. He's dedicated to his job, much to the chagrin of his loyal wife Evelyn (Hayley Atwell) daughter Madeline (Bronte Carmichael). His plans for a weekend of rest and relaxation with his family are interrupted by a last-minute request by his boss Giles (Mark Gatiss) to shave 20 percent from the company's budget at the threat of losing his job. At the same time, Winnie-the-Pooh (voiced by Jim Cummings) has lost his friends Tigger (also Cummings), Eeyore (Brad Garrett), Kanga (Sophie Okonedo), Roo (Sara Sheen), Piglet (Nick Mohammed), Owl (Toby Jones) and Rabbit (Peter Capaldi) somewhere in the Hundred Acre Wood. A cinematic act of fate brings Pooh and Christopher Robin together again, each the only one who can help the other find what they are looking for.

Christopher Robin quite often evokes the best of the Winnie the Pooh franchise. Aside from Tigger's hyperactivity, the film's tone is calm and genial, focused on small moments and the profundity found within them. A simple party is a treasure, an event to be luxuriated in because of the company you're with and the memories that stay thereafter. There are few moments in life as pleasant as spending time with some very good friends, even if the occasion is a long goodbye. The themes of friendship in Christopher Robin ring very true. There's little to no sappiness or faux endearment in this movie; the fondness the characters have for one another are genuine and sweet. The room gets a little dusty when Pooh holds Piglet's hand, reassuring the scared creature that he is always needed. And even after 90-plus years of existence, Christopher Robin's friends remain as charming as ever. Piglet, Pooh, Eeyore (the film's MVP), Kanga, Roo, Owl, and Rabbit are a great collection of characters, quirky enough to have unique personalities but with an underlying love for one another despite their differences. Tigger can be a bit much, but the film holds his appearances back to reduce the scenery chewing inherent to his character. Christopher Robin makes it simple to see why it would be so difficult for the eponymous character to have to say goodbye, and how happy he would be to say hello again when they re-enter his life. 

 

The tremendously shallow story is Christopher Robin undoing. A grown up Christopher Robin forgoing his love of doing nothing is a trite narrative, compounded by the work-obsessed father forgoing his child plot. Hook did this more than 20 years ago now, as have pretty much every movie in which a character tries to recapture their childhood. The cliché would work if the movie had something interesting to say about the situation, but the film follows the tropes without expanding on them, using them as a crutch instead of a launching pad to something interesting. The pacing doesn't help this as well; the film spends so much time establishing Christopher Robin as a numbers-obsessed workaholic the inevitable dive back into pleasant times is rushed and unfulfilling.

That Christopher Robin focuses on Christopher Robin is to be expected. That the female characters are relegated as plot devices instead of people is disappointing. Despite her best efforts, Atwell's entire purpose in this movie is to chastise Christopher Robin for losing his laughter and lust for life, and there is little an actress can do with such a limited role. Carmichael's Madeline should at least serve as a mirror for Christopher Robin, but the film can only hint at the parallel without going into it because it allocates most of its time to Christopher Robin’s self discovery. Madeline is the great lost opportunity for this movie, the character who very well should be in the spotlight as much as Christopher Robin, if not more so.

There really isn't a great reason to see what happens to Christopher Robin as an adult. Christopher Robin doesn't provide the narrative justification for jumping ahead 30-odd years in his life, and the adventures Pooh and his friends have in this film does nothing to advance them as characters. Yet the film’s charm and goodwill override the lack of necessity. Sometimes, it's just nice to see some old, dear friends again.

Review: Three and a half out of Five Stars

Click here to see the trailer.

Rating: PG

Run time: 104 minutes

Genre: Family

tl;dr

What Worked: Brad Garrett as Eeyore, Jim Cummings as Pooh, the genial tone

What Fell Short: Narrative laziness, tropes

What To Watch As Well: Pete's Dragon, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh