Paddington in Peru, the third movie in the Paddington franchise, was released in the U.S. Feb. 14, 2025. Paddington in Peru is a family-friendly watch with a running time of one hour and 46 minutes. While fans had high expectations for this new release, the movie was sorely disappointed due to its overly complicated plot and themes that strayed from the previous Paddington movies.
In the first Paddington movie, a young bear from Peru named Paddington is sent away by his aunt after an earthquake destroys their home.When he finally reaches London, the Brown family comes along, and Mary Brown (Sally Hawkins) and her son Jonathan Brown (Samuel Joslin) decide Paddington looks like he needs a home. Eventually, Mary’s husband Henry (Hugh Bonneville) and daughter Judy (Madeleine Harris) begrudgingly agree. For Paddington, finding his place in the Brown family proves more difficult than it seems, especially when a taxidermist with her eyes on Paddington comes into play.
The second movie takes a different route, with Paddington tirelessly searching for the perfect gift to give his Aunt Lucy (Imelda Stuanton), who lives at the home for retired bears in Darkest Peru. When Paddington finally finds the perfect gift, it is stolen and Paddington is accused and arrested. The Browns must embark on an adventure to find the culprit and prove Paddington’s innocence. The new release, Paddington in Peru, follows Paddington and the Brown family as they leave London and travel to the jungle of Darkest Peru.
Though Paul King directed the first two Paddington movies, Dougal Wilson directed Paddington in Peru alongside production from Marmalade Films, Heyday Films, Colombia Pictures, and StudioCanal. Academy Award-winning Italian composer Dario Marianelli composed Paddington in Peru’s soundtrack, his talents evident from the beginning of the film, which includes a lively musical number sung by the nuns in the home for retired bears. Though enjoyable, the song “Let’s Prepare for Paddington” was out of the blue and felt random as it is the only musical number in the film.
Outside of the musical divergence, many other things have changed with the Brown family. Judy, the oldest daughter, is applying to universities, Jonathan, the youngest son, stays home most of the time “chilling,” and Henry is struggling to see eye to eye with his colleagues after new management takes office. All the while Mary (Emily Mortimer) realizes how far apart her family has grown and how little time they spend together. In this new film, Mary is played by actress Emily Mortimer, which differs from previous movies where Sally Hawkins played the role of Ms. Brown. Though strange to see a new person playing the sweet and quirky Mary Brown, Mortimer did a good job and the change did not negatively impact the movie.
Soon after the movie begins, the Browns decide to drop everything to travel to Peru with Paddington when he receives a letter from the Reverend Mother (Olivia Coleman), a nun at the home for retired bears where Paddington’s Aunt Lucy lives. The letter contains an urgent message stating Aunt Lucy is not herself and misses him dearly. That is all the information Paddington needs; he immediately packs up and travels to Peru.
When Paddington and the Browns finally make it to Peru they are struck by some distressing news: his Aunt Lucy is missing! After finding some of her belongings, and a map to start their search, the Browns embark on their third family adventure. However, Paddington soon realizes the simple search only seems to scratch the surface of the true mystery and reason behind Paddington and the Browns’ travels and the disappearance of Aunt Lucy.
Paddington in Peru strays from themes and motifs of the first two movies and includes some supernatural themes, including curses and ghosts, along with ideas that the mythical city of El Dorado exists. Except for the fact the movie is centered around talking bears, these themes of magic, curses, and the supernatural, are out of the blue for the franchise as the first two movies contain none of these magical or otherworldly themes.
Though fun and exciting, the film does not live up to the expectations that the first two movies set for it. The simplicity of the first two films with just the right amount of adventure and humor made them the masterpieces they have become, but this third movie was overly complicated and didn’t have that safe and cozy Paddington movie feel audiences know and love from the first two films.
The film still portrays an exciting adventure that keeps you on the edge of your seat for the whole movie. Along with the exhilarating journey, the movie also portrays themes of family that might make you teary-eyed near the end of the film. The movie, however, still wasn’t anything special. Because of this, Paddington in Peru earns two out of five feathers.
