Paddington is a 2014 British comedy film, directed by Paul King,
written by King and Hamish McColl, and produced by David Heyman.
Based
on 'Paddington Bear' by Michael Bond, the film stars Ben Whishaw as the
voice of the title character, along with Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins,
Julie Walters, and Nicole Kidman in live-action roles.
Paddington
received very positive reviews from film critics. The Times: 'Endearing,
hilarious, and for humans of a certain vintage, tearfully nostalgic'.
The Guardian: 'A charming and sweet-natured family film, full of wit and
fun, skewed towards young children but cheekily speckled with sly gags
pitched at the older audience'. Empire Magazine: 'Marmaladen with gloriously
silly jokes, pitch-perfect performances and incidental detail, this is
a warm, witty and wondrously inventive great big bear-hug of a movie'.
Tomatometer: 'Paddington brings a beloved children's character
into the 21st century without sacrificing his essential charm, delivering
a family-friendly adventure as irresistibly cuddly as its star'.
The
film tells the story of the comic misadventures of a young Peruvian bear
who travels to the city in search of a home. Finding himself lost and
alone at Paddington Station, he begins to realise that city life is not
all he had imagined – until he meets the kindly Brown family who
read the label around his neck that says "Please look after this
bear. Thank you." and offer him a temporary haven. But little do
the Browns realise just how much chaos one small bear can cause –
and they soon discover that their lives will never be the same again!
Paddington
was released in the United Kingdom on 28 November 2014.
Cinema
Trailer
Development
The film was first announced in 2007 with David Heyman producing
and Hamish McColl writing the screenplay.
Further developments were not made until 2013, when filming began
and Heyman announced the casting of Colin Firth as Paddington. With
a budget of €38.5 million ($50–55 million), Paddington
is the most expensive film produced by the French production company
StudioCanal.
Principal
photography and production began on 13 September 2013. In June 2014,
after principal photography had wrapped, Firth voluntarily dropped
out of the film after the studio decided his voice was not suitable
for Paddington. The role was recast the following month, with Ben
Whishaw signing on to play the title role. Paddington was created
using a combination of computer-generated imagery, by British company
Framestore, and animatronics.
Cast
Ben
Whishaw as the voice of Paddington
Hugh Bonneville as Henry Brown
Sally Hawkins as Mary Brown
Madeleine Harris as Judy Brown
Samuel Joslin as Jonathan Brown
Julie Walters as Mrs. Bird
Nicole Kidman as Millicent Clyde
Jim Broadbent as Samuel Gruber
Peter Capaldi as Mr. Curry
Imelda Staunton as the voice of Aunt Lucy
Michael Gambon as the voice of Uncle Pastuzo
Tim Downie as Montgomery Clyde
Simon Farnaby as Barry
Matt Lucas as Joe
Matt King as Andre the Thief
Michael Bond as the Kindly Gentleman
Release
Paddington was released on 28 November 2014 in the United Kingdom,
where it took in £5.1 million on its opening weekend, and
topped the box office for two weeks.
It
was StudioCanal's highest opening box office. For the week ending
9 December 2014, it topped the box office in France. For the week
ending 24 December 2014, it topped the box office in Australia.
The
film was released in the United States by TWC-Dimension on 16 January
2015.