The Paddington films are capable of generating that irresistibly fuzzy and warm feeling in the manner of the all-time family classics. Ben Whisaw's endearing ursine hero is back this November in Paddington in Peru, which takes the title character back to his South American roots as he prepares to visit his beloved Aunt Lucy (Imelda Staunton). And, of course, the hapless Browns, led by Hugh Bonneville's Mr. Brown, are coming along for the ride.
With new cast members including Olivia Colman and Antonio Banderas, there's no denying that Paddington in Peru is the biggest and most ambitious in the series so far. Get prepared with our look back at the funniest scenes from Paddington (2014) and Paddington 2 (2017). Also, don't forget to complete your Paddington experience with our cup and toppers offer at Cineworld: one of 2 collectible toppers is available for just £5.99 when you buy any combo or Munchbox, or £7.99 on its own
1. "Bear left"
The best kind of jokes are simple, often verbal, and this riff on the banal, commonplace phrase 'bare left' embodies why the Paddington films are so good. It's a simple linguistic trade-off that comes and goes in a manner of seconds, akin to a fleet-footed dance move by Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, but one that serves to complement and enhance the slapstick chaos that's occurring elsewhere in the scene. The best kind of humour is humour that doesn't call overt attention to itself. That's Paddington in a nutshell: wry yet precision-timed like a piece of clockwork.
2. Paddington and Mr. Brown infiltrate the Guild
Cross-dressing gags risk coming across as hopelessly ill-judged and yet the first Paddington film gets away with it because of the gently absurdist, theatrical manner that pervades the entire picture. When you already have a bear talking in a polite, clipped English accent without anyone batting an eye lid, it's only a hop, skip and a jump to get Hugh Bonneville's stuffy insurance analyst Mr. Brown dressing up as a cleaning lady. More than that, it also cements Mr. Brown and Paddington's bond as they aim to get to the heart of the bear's origins in Peru.
3. Paddington becomes a barber
The Paddington films evince a clear love of classic slapstick humour with many scenes invoking the groundbreaking silent cinema likes of Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd. The scene near the start of Paddington 2, when Paddington attempts to earn an honest wage as a barber generates pure, undistilled belly laughs from our hero's ability to turn a commonplace environment into an arena of madness.
4. Paddington in jail
The Paddington movies know how to go broad for laughs but they also understand how to use subtle, minimalist character blocking to have us roaring our heads off. There's more than a touch of Wes Anderson-style detachment in the scene when the Browns visit the incarcerated Paddington, only to be greeted one at a time by his new inmate friends. Paul King's delightful framing is an economic marvel, literally encompassing a "rogue's gallery" within a single jailhouse picture window and without ever moving the camera.
5. Phoenix Buchanan's jailhouse showstopper
Hugh Grant declared Paddington 2 as the best film he's ever been in and it's not hard to see why. In the role of the preening, faded actor Phoenix Buchanan, Grant can effectively channel the contempt he's always felt toward the acting profession, but the role itself is clearly catnip for a performer of Grant's abilities. It runs the dramatic gamut from the indignant to the mildly threatening to the theatrically ridiculous, as seen in the final sequence when the incarcerated Buchanan puts on a show of Stephen Sondheim's 'Rain on the Roof'.
Paddington in Peru arrives at Cineworld on November 8th. You can book your tickets below.
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