'Paddington 2': The beloved British bear returns to cinemas
Jan Tomes
November 9, 2017
After the success of the first movie, the clumsy British bear Paddington is back with a new adventure. This time, the popular children's book character is chasing thieves who stole a gift for his aunt.
Image: StudioCanal
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Paddington and other beloved bears in film and literature
Paddington Bear appeared in more than 20 books written by Michael Bond, who died last year aged 91. Here are other famous fictional bears in film and literature.
This little bear from Peru arrived at Paddington station with only a sun hat and suitcase in hand. The Brown family found him there and took him along, naming him after the station where he was discovered. Author Michael Bond wrote the story of Paddington Bear, which was published in 1958. After an animated series, the film "Paddington" came out in 2014 film, followed by the sequel in 2017.
Image: StudioCanal
Winnie the Pooh
Sweet, scatterbrained and good-natured - that's Winnie the Pooh. The story of this lovable bear was written in the 1920s by Alan Alexander Milne, who made Pooh the most famous bear to have appeared in children's books. After his death, the rights to the stories were purchased by Walt Disney, and movies and series soon followed. In 2006, Pooh was even given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Image: dpa - Bildarchiv
The Bare Necessities
Baloo the bear is perhaps best-known as the sweet "Papa bear" from the Disney film "The Jungle Book." Many will be familiar with his catchy tune, "The Bare Necessities," which gained fame all over the world. The 1967 animated film is based loosely on a collection of stories published in the 1900s by English author Rudyard Kipling.
Lars the little polar bear
Lars lives with his parents in the middle of ice and snow in the North Pole. There, he embarks on plenty of exciting and dangerous adventures with his pals. This children's book series was written by Dutch author Hans de beer in 1987. It also received a television show in 1992 and was made into a film in 2001.
Image: picture alliance/United Archives/IFTN
Brother Bear
Set at the end of the Ice Age in North America, a boy named Kenai kills a bear, and in revenge, gets turned into one. Hunted by his own family, he finds a companion in a little bear named Kuma. This 2003 Disney movie is heavy on motives of love, friendship and forgiveness. In 2004, it was even nominated for an Oscar in the Best Animated Film category.
Image: picture-alliance/KPA
A bear with fatherly instincts
In the Russian animated series "Mascha and the Bear," the bear is a retired circus animal living in a forest hut. He hopes to enjoy his quiet twilight years, but a young girl named Mascha visits frequently, bringing new chaos with each encounter. "Mascha and the Bear" is one of the most famous Russian animated series to date.
Image: Masha and the Bear Ltd
Not only famous in animated form
French feature film "The Bear" from 1988 is the most successful film to have a real bear in the starring role. Directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud, the script is based on James Oliver Curwood’s novel "The Grizzly King." It depicts the adventures of a young bear that loses its mother and eventually befriends an older bear.
Image: PA/dpa
7 images1 | 7
Now happily settled with the Brown family after his adventures in the first "Paddington" movie from 2014, the bear Paddington picks up a series of odd jobs to buy the perfect present, an old book about London, for his Aunt Lucy's 100th birthday. But when the book gets stolen, Paddington sets out for a spectacular journey.
The film stars Ben Whishaw as the voice of the main character and Hugh Grant in the role of the villain.
The first movie, directed by the then-newcomer director Paul King, was a huge success with box office sales of $268 million (€230 million). Its sequel, "Paddington 2," written by King again, might well be heading in the same direction if the extraordinarily positive reviews are any indication.
Olly Richardson from British film magazine Empire gave the movie the best possible rating, describing it "as a pure delight, as sweet and sharp as, well, marmalade, really."
"Every bit as perfectly tuned, cruelty-free funny and kind-hearted as its predecessor, maybe even more so," states The Hollywood Reporter review, summarizing the movie as "almost unbearably wonderful."
The movie premieres on November 10 in the UK, on November 23 in Germany and on January 12 in the US.
Paddington Bear has been enjoyed by generations of children, with more than 35 million books sold, the publisher HarperCollins said after releasing the latest Paddington story, "Paddington's Finest Hour," in April.
Paddington and other beloved bears in film and literature
Paddington Bear appeared in more than 20 books written by Michael Bond, who died last year aged 91. Here are other famous fictional bears in film and literature.
This little bear from Peru arrived at Paddington station with only a sun hat and suitcase in hand. The Brown family found him there and took him along, naming him after the station where he was discovered. Author Michael Bond wrote the story of Paddington Bear, which was published in 1958. After an animated series, the film "Paddington" came out in 2014 film, followed by the sequel in 2017.
Image: StudioCanal
Winnie the Pooh
Sweet, scatterbrained and good-natured - that's Winnie the Pooh. The story of this lovable bear was written in the 1920s by Alan Alexander Milne, who made Pooh the most famous bear to have appeared in children's books. After his death, the rights to the stories were purchased by Walt Disney, and movies and series soon followed. In 2006, Pooh was even given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Image: dpa - Bildarchiv
The Bare Necessities
Baloo the bear is perhaps best-known as the sweet "Papa bear" from the Disney film "The Jungle Book." Many will be familiar with his catchy tune, "The Bare Necessities," which gained fame all over the world. The 1967 animated film is based loosely on a collection of stories published in the 1900s by English author Rudyard Kipling.
Lars the little polar bear
Lars lives with his parents in the middle of ice and snow in the North Pole. There, he embarks on plenty of exciting and dangerous adventures with his pals. This children's book series was written by Dutch author Hans de beer in 1987. It also received a television show in 1992 and was made into a film in 2001.
Image: picture alliance/United Archives/IFTN
Brother Bear
Set at the end of the Ice Age in North America, a boy named Kenai kills a bear, and in revenge, gets turned into one. Hunted by his own family, he finds a companion in a little bear named Kuma. This 2003 Disney movie is heavy on motives of love, friendship and forgiveness. In 2004, it was even nominated for an Oscar in the Best Animated Film category.
Image: picture-alliance/KPA
A bear with fatherly instincts
In the Russian animated series "Mascha and the Bear," the bear is a retired circus animal living in a forest hut. He hopes to enjoy his quiet twilight years, but a young girl named Mascha visits frequently, bringing new chaos with each encounter. "Mascha and the Bear" is one of the most famous Russian animated series to date.
Image: Masha and the Bear Ltd
Not only famous in animated form
French feature film "The Bear" from 1988 is the most successful film to have a real bear in the starring role. Directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud, the script is based on James Oliver Curwood’s novel "The Grizzly King." It depicts the adventures of a young bear that loses its mother and eventually befriends an older bear.
Image: PA/dpa
7 images1 | 7
The author Michael Bond, who passed away this July, named the bear after the London railway station where he was found, having arrived from "deepest, darkest Peru" according to the writer's famous description. The bear was wearing a tag around his neck that read "Please look after this bear."
