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Paddington 2: Lessons From A Bear

January 12, 2018 by J. Alan Sharrer Leave a Comment

We all know life can be difficult and challenging—sometimes before 8:30 in the morning. Drivers treat the commute like a game of Pole Position. Co-workers spray mean-spirited comments around the office like they’re watering a garden.  Social media serves as a hub for negativity to fester among friends both real and virtual.  Hectic schedules cause unrelenting stress. Homework is a horror for kids and a never-ending nightmare for adults. And then there’s the news . . .

Though life does not consist solely of de-thorned roses, we can still make the most of whatever situation we find ourselves in. That is one of the main messages of Paddington 2, the latest movie by Studio Canal and director Paul King. Following on the footsteps of the highly successful first film, the second iteration continues the adventures of the charming bear with the red hat and bright blue peacoat. Touching in some areas, laugh-out loud funny in others, it’s an irresistibly charming addition to the series.

Paddington (voiced by Ben Whishaw) has settled down with the Brown family in Windsor Gardens but wants to get Aunt Lucy a present for her 100th birthday. Passing by an antique shop one day, he spots a pop-up book of London that would be perfect. However, the book is quite expensive so he decides to get a job to pay for it.  His role as a barber doesn’t quite go as intended, so he reverts to a window washer—a task he’s uniquely made for.  Before he can get his paws on the book though, it’s stolen by a burglar. Paddington sees the break-in and attempts to catch the culprit, only to be arrested erroneously by the police and sentenced to twelve years in prison.

Life in jail is quite different for Paddington, but the bear, with his usual hopefulness and positivity taught to him by his Aunt Lucy, attempts to make the most of his situation.  However, Paddington learns a lesson anyone who’s ever washed clothes will attest to: a red sock in a bunch of white prison outfits equals a bunch of unhappy prisoners.  Maybe he can make it up to everyone by getting Knuckles the cook (Brendan Gleeson) to serve something remotely appetizing . . .

Meanwhile, the Browns realize Paddington is innocent and start an investigation into who stole the pop-up book.  They put up flyers, snoop around houses, and scour the community for clues while doing their best to let Paddington know.  When they forget to show up one day, Paddington begins to think they’ve moved on without him.

But there is a break in the case when Mrs. Brown discovers the culprit is a neighbor and former actor—Phoenix Buchanan (Hugh Grant).  But why does he want the pop-up book?  Is there something special about it?  Will Paddington serve the entire prison sentence, or will his motto of “If we’re kind and polite, the world will be right” live up to its billing?  It’s worth finding out.

As in the first film, the acting is top notch, with Grant enjoyably smarmy yet flamboyant as the former actor turned thief.  Mr. and Mrs. Brown (Hugh Bonneville and Sally Hawkins) provide just the right amount of levity in a family where everyone has big ambitions (it’s ironic that Hawkins, recently honored with a Golden Globe nomination for the film The Shape of Water, plays a character whose goal is to swim the English Channel). Of course, Paddington is just as you’d expect—a lovable bear who sometimes makes mistakes but always follows the mantra of his Aunt Lucy: “If you look for the good in people, you’ll find it.” To that end, he’s the hero we need right now.

What do we do when times get tough?  Do we run away or are we brave, jumping headlong into the fray?  I think about Joshua in the Old Testament as he prepared to lead an entire nation into a new land—one they were promised by God.  It must have felt like a daunting task he was incapable of accomplishing—after all, he was a slave while in Egypt. God gave Joshua a healthy shot of courage when he told him to “be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9 NLT). He took that advice, just like Paddington did with Aunt Lucy’s words, and moved forward to make things better for others.

What can happen in our world if we just attempt to look for the best in others and simply be nice?  Perhaps we should strive to find out.  I think Paddington and Aunt Lucy would agree.

Filed Under: Film, Reviews Tagged With: Bear, Ben Whishaw, Brendan Gleeson, Hugh Bonneville, Hugh Grant, Joshua, Lessons, London, Paddington 2, Paul King, Sally Hawkins

Goodbye Christopher Robin: Parenting 101

October 12, 2017 by J. Alan Sharrer Leave a Comment

Photo by David Appleby. © 2017 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation All Rights Reserved

Recently, Winnie the Pooh was selected as the most popular children’s book of all time.  The lovable characters of the Hundred Acre Wood—Piglet, Tigger, Owl, Kanga, Roo, and of course Pooh Bear—have become ingrained in the imaginations of children and adults worldwide.  But there is an intriguing backstory to the whole phenomenon.  Director Simon Curtis (David Copperfield, Woman in Gold) brings this story to the table in the form of Goodbye Christopher Robin.  If you’re expecting a warm and cuddly film that causes you to walk out of the theater with a bunch of warm fuzzies, think again.  Rather, Goodbye Christopher Robin is a sadly cautionary tale of why the innocence and wonder of childhood should never be sacrificed on the altars of prestige and popularity.

Alan Milne (Domhnall Gleason), known to his close buddies as Blue, is a talented playwright on the East End of London around 1920.  However, he was part of WWI and his PTSD has caused him to stop writing, to the chagrin of his wife Daphne (Margot Robbie), who’s beautiful on the outside and not-so-beautiful inside. To avoid the issues of his disorder, he moves to the countryside but finds the writing still isn’t happening.  The Milnes have one child, Christopher Robin (known to his family as Billy Moon and played in the film by Will Tilston [later by Alex Lawther]), who lives an odd yet sad life.  He is taken care of by his nanny Olive (Kelly MacDonald), but is held at arm’s length by Alan and Daphne, who are affluent and not afraid to head out to a spectacular ball from time to time.  Christopher must also deal with random bouts of Alan’s PTSD that flare up, causing him to be somewhat timid around them.

When Daphne gets tired of Alan’s writer’s block and desire to wrote about the effects of war, she leaves him until he gets something accomplished.  Olive is gone as well, so he’s left in an awkward place attempting to care for his son.  Alan discovers that his son may not be as bad as first thought and joins Christopher Robin as he plays with his teddy bear and other stuffed animals in the woods behind their home. When Christopher asks him to write him a children’s story, Alan balks.  But he gets an idea and writes a poem called Vespers about his son saying his prayers with Olive.  When Daphne returns, she informs him that his work was published in Vanity Fair and hands him a check. Spurred by this, he creates a book about his son’s adventures with the living stuffed animals.  It sells like hotcakes, and the rest is history.

Photo by David Appleby. © 2017 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation All Rights Reserved

But there’s more to the story.  Alan and Daphne see the book’s success and come up with marketing ideas to get the work out even more.  Sadly, they all involve the exploitation of Christopher.  In one scene, Christopher visits a toy store and is greeted by the manager, then two doors to the outside are opened, where hundreds of screaming fans are awaiting his arrival paired with a few little girls seated at a table ready to have tea with the child.  It was part of a contest and Christopher’s reaction is simply heartbreaking.  He just doesn’t understand; he wants to live an ordinary life but it simply won’t happen.  Even a simple phone call to dad becomes part of a radio show to tout the book.  Alan finally gets the picture and puts him in a boarding school to avoid the masses.  You can guess how that turns out.

Photo by Ben Smithard. © 2017 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation All Rights Reserved

Eventually, Christopher forces his dad to let him enlist in the army during WWII so he can become anonymous for a while.  Only after Olive lights up the Milnes and Christopher shares his feelings with Alan does his father realize that he’s made some really bad mistakes.  But is there still time for it to be corrected before the train whisks him to the front lines and harm’s way?

Goodbye Christopher Robin is quite depressing, but it only works because of the hand of Simon Curtis. With a lighter hand, the tale develops into a farce; a heavier hand renders it unwatchable. The acting is good for the most part, though Daphne is a one-note character and gets an ending she really doesn’t deserve. Of course, the gorgeous cinematography of the English countryside brings to mind any number of films such as Finding Neverland.

However, the main point of the film involves good parenting.  In Proverbs, we find the adage “Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it” (Prov 22:6 NASB). Spending time with one’s children is important, getting to know and appreciate them for who they are, not who they might become. We can have fantastic dreams and plans for our offspring, but forcing the hand tends to make them resentful and reactionary in due time. Likewise, using them as a way to further our personal careers is akin to abuse—just not in a physical manner. Children are gifts that should be treated as such—with love, care, correction, and encouragement to be all God wants them to be. They tend to prosper under that environment.  But even if it seems like all hope is lost is relating to our children, it may not. We must learn to communicate with them and keep the lines open. Parenting is difficult work, no doubt about it.  But it can produce the greatest rewards—rewards no bestseller can ever hope to accomplish.

Filed Under: Film, Reviews Tagged With: AA Milne, Alex Lawther, Domnhall Gleason, Exploitation, Goodbye Christopher Robin, Kelly MacDonald, London, Margot Robbie, parenting, Simon Curtis, Will Tilston, Winnie the Pooh

Origins Ep 1 — Fire is Life

March 6, 2017 by J. Alan Sharrer Leave a Comment

If you try to play with fire, you get burned.  Or your city burns down, as London learned in 1666. (photo credit: National Geographic)

It’s quite difficult to imagine living life without fire.

Go on; give it a try.

Staying warm would be an issue on cold evenings.  Food would have to be consumed in its natural form—raw (okay; fruits and veggies might not be that bad, but carnivores would probably not like the idea). There wouldn’t be any steel for buildings or even weaponry to protect oneself. In a lot of ways, humankind would become primitive.  The saying on the show Survivor is true—fire is life.  Lose it, and the game is over.

But over the centuries, people have learned to harness the power of the red flower (quoting Kipling’s Jungle Book) for good. As a result, we are able to live the modern lives we so enjoy, with our towering skyscrapers, gleaming knives for cooking over stoves, and even the creation of the cell phones we use to communicate with others.  A new series on National Geographic Channel is set to explore the important innovations and moments that helped to bring modernity to our society. Called Origins: The Journey of Humankind, it will air on Monday nights at 9 PM (8 CT).  It’s hosted by Jason Silva (Brain Games) and is a fast-paced journey that is worth a look if you’re into science and how things came to be.

Guess what this led to. (photo credit: National Geographic)

The first episode is on the aforementioned fire and is fascinating in both its scope and context. John Boswell (known as Melodysheep) handled the audiovisual sequences, which are rapid-fire and bring immediate clarity to the topic at hand.  Silva’s narration is interspersed with various dramatic portions, such as when London learned the hard way that fire can be difficult to control—as a result, there was a huge fire in 1666 that destroyed much of the city.  But we learned to harness it (somewhat), when Robert Goddard created the first rocket.  Overall, the show is fairly well conceived and presents numerous opportunities to consider how we got to where we are today.  I think Silva repeats himself too much, but that may just be a matter of personal taste.

Just as Silva notes that fire plays a role in the modernization of mankind, we can see similar ‘moments’ in the Bible. Moses saw a burning bush where he first encountered God (see Exodus 3). The Israelites were led by a pillar of fire on their journey to the Promised Land (see Exodus 13:2-22).  The fire on the Temple altar was never to go out (see Leviticus 6:12-14). Peter began the process of denying he was a follower of Jesus while staying warm at a fire (see Luke 22:54-56). Jesus cooked a meal over fire, after his return to life, before he restored Peter after the above-mentioned denial (see John 21). The Spirit passed over the new believers in Jerusalem, granting them the ability to speak in other languages when tongues of flame landed on them (see Acts 2:1-12). James even likened the tongue to a fire—it can start forest fires of problems if not checked consistently (he also notes that no man can tame it, but we should certainly give it our best try—see James 3:5-7). And there are plenty more to consider.

Fire is life.  Without it, we cease to be what we are.  It would be wise to consider that as we go through our day—and as we think about God.

Filed Under: Current Events, Reviews, Television Tagged With: Acts, Bible, Burning Bush, Fire, Goddard, James, Jason Silva, Jesus, Jin Dynasty, Jungle Book, London, London Fire, Melodysheep, Moses, National Grographic, Origins, Pentecost, Peter, Pillar of Fire, Red Flower, Tongue

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