Winnie the Pooh is good, solid family entertainment

RATING:**** (out of 5)

Growing up, I wasn’t a big fan of Winnie the Pooh. I know this statement probably borders on blasphemy, but when I was watching my cartoons, I wanted them to be funny. Well, that or “Batman.” With the exception of the performance at Tyler Civic Theatre, I just never sought out any Pooh-related material.

When “Christopher Robin” opened this past weekend, I had no real expectations for it, beyond the hopes that it would at least be entertaining. I was legitimately surprised how much I enjoyed the film.

“Christopher Robin” is the tale of…well, Christopher Robin (Ewan McGregor). In the film, we follow him after he left behind his friends in the Hundred Acre Woods. He is sent to boarding school, grows up, gets married, goes to fight in the war, and returns home to his wife Evelyn (Hayley Atwell) and daughter, Madeline (Bronte Charmichael).

Once a young man with a vivid imagination, Christopher is now a stressed, overworked efficiency manager for Winslow Luggage. He is forced by his boss, Giles (Mark Gatiss), to cancel a weekend getaway with his family to figure out a way to save the company money. The stress begns to drive away his family. With them going away without him, he is left alone to work. However, his old friend Winnie the Pooh (Jim Cummings) shows up, unable to find the rest of their friends.

Christopher decides to take him back to the Hundred Acre Woods. Pooh is reunited with Piglet (Nick Mohammed), Eeyore (Brad Garrett), Tigger (also Cummings), and the rest of the crew. Despite being a bear of little brain (but big heart), he tells his friends that this time they needed to go to London and help Christopher Robin.

“Christopher Robin” is directed by Marc Forster, whose long and varied career includes Oscar-winner “Monster’s Ball” and Bond film “Quantum of Solace.” Forster’s career has been hit and miss over the years, but here he was able to bring fantastical characters to life and make them seem real.

The film is a much more grounded, dramatic tale at times, but also remains incredibly faithful to the characters created by A.A. Milne. It’s a heartwarming tale that reminds you that the most important things in life are those who you care about and vice versa.

If you’re looking for good, solid family entertainment that will make you laugh and pull on the heartstrings every now and then, this is the film you are looking for.