Paddington in Peru

With Paddington in Peru, its third charming film in as many attempts, this series has officially become the Toy Story of anthropomorphic talking bear movies.

Though the latest adventure isn’t quite on the level of of the first two, Paul-King-directed installments, director Dougal Wilson stays true to the series’ winning combination of heart and innocent slapstick humor, and feels right at home in his feature debut.

That sense of comfort is fitting for a film about belonging and the ever-shifting dynamics of domestic life. Joined by his adoptive London family the Browns, whose parental units (Emily Mortimer and Hugh Bonneville) are experiencing a bit of premature empty nest syndrome, Paddington (voiced by Ben Whishaw) returns to his native land to visit his Aunt Lucy (voiced by Imelda Staunton), only to find she's vanished into the Amazon.

Continuing in the footsteps of Nicole Kidman and Hugh Grant, Antonio Banderas revels in playing the series’ latest antagonist, though his riverboat captain Hunter Cabot poses a more complex threat, one rooted in a family curse that he handles like an addict struggling to stay clean. And Carla Tous proves a plucky sidekick for Hunter as his daughter Gina, who does her best to compensate for her father’s slipping hold on reality as they take the Browns up the river.

Along the way, Wilson and his writing team work in fun homages to The Sound of Music (complete with a silly singalong by Olivia Colman’s Mother Superior and her fellow nuns), 2001: A Space Odyssey, and Raiders of the Lost Ark, but stay focused on expanding Paddington’s legend and his polite, bumbling, marmalade-fueled ways.

Without getting preachy, this creative team crafts a thematically rich tale of an immigrant returning to his roots and figuring out where he belongs, complete with smart call-backs to seemingly throwaway early moments and building to well-earned tear-jerking climactic moments.

While Paddington in Peru doesn't go as dark as Toy Story does in its third installment, this series is thankfully moving forward with its own distinct style and tone in mind, and that commitment continues to serve it well.

Viewers of all ages are lucky to have such exceptional all-ages films like these.

Grade: B. Rated PG. Now playing at AMC River Hills 10, Carolina Cinemark, and Regal Biltmore Grande.

(Photo: Sony Pictures)