"But wherever they go, and whatever happens to them on the way, in that enchanted place on the top of the Forest, a little boy and his Bear will always be playing."
So ends “The House at Pooh Corner,” A.A. Milne’s second volume of stories centered upon the imagination of his son, Christopher Robin, and the boy’s stuffed companions. Published in 1928, the always has been always there, leaving the words to gather layers in nostalgia from generations of our own fond memories.
Yet, as we learn in Disney’s Christopher Robin, even always can expire, and while the book may hold otherwise, the film has taken us forward to a time when a little boy is fully grown, and his Bear barely but a memory.
I cried the first time I watched the trailer for Christopher Robin. Also, the second. The likable ease and careful grace of Ewan McGregor as the title character and the warm, comfortable tones of Jim Cummings reprising his role as the voice of Winnie the Pooh not only felt perfect, it felt needed. Suddenly, the idea of returning to the Hundred Acre Wood was as inviting as going back to bed on a dark and rainy day. The fact is, I’m awfully tired, and it’s been raining for a while.
Needless to say, when it was announced that Disney Vacation Club would screen Christopher Robin for its members on a special Disney Cruise Line sailing, my family and I were ecstatic—mostly because we were on said sailing. It was a week before the regular press screenings for the film and just one of the many perks onboard (other movie-related fun included Josie Trinidad, head of story on Ralph Breaks the Internet, speaking about her upcoming film, as well as the growing inclusiveness and culture of Disney animation; Jared Bush, writer of Zootopia and Moana, respectfully, on the craft and process of screenwriting; and Pixar legends Pete Docter and Michael Giacchino sharing the dance between story and score). The Disney Vacation Club screening of Christopher Robin was the main entertainment on its respective night, nestled on the calendar between original stage shows and a concert featuring some of Broadway’s finest, and it became immediately clear that my family wasn’t the only one missing a silly old bear. Everyone remembers always, sailing or otherwise.
Of course, the rest of Christopher Robin’s childhood is back, too: Tigger (Cummings), Eeyore (Brad Garrett), Piglet (Nick Mohammed), Rabbit (Peter Capaldi), Kanga (Sophie Okonedo), Roo (Sara Sheen) and Owl (Toby Jones), and with them our own shared innocence, connected as we are by 90 years and bits of fluff.
New to the adventures of Robin and friends, his wife Evelyn (Hayley Atwell) and daughter Madeline (Bronte Carmichael). They are the affected in Christopher Robin’s life, and they are the inspiration for his change.
Christopher Robin resonates with modern audiences because it is a blend of the past—the aforementioned nostalgia of childhood and the freedom of simple friendships housed lightly therein—and also the now, when happiness is sometimes a thing we think of fondly, despite it being always at the ready. This is the always we have always heard about.
And then there is the villain. While it would be easy to suggest that Robin’s boss, Giles Winslow (Mark Gatiss) fits the role, it is bigger than that. The wrongdoer is time and the consequences of adulthood as it relates to, and weighs upon, Christopher Robin. It is the insecurity we all feel and the masks we hide behind.
Growing up is a funny thing. It is often said that we each lose our innocence, a drop here and a smackerel there, a gradual thing that we seldom recognize until it's too late. Still, we know it when we see it, as the mere existence of parents can attest, encouraging our children to embrace their joy and to run fast with it. It leads one to wonder, is it ever lost at all, or do we simply leave it for our offspring, both map and invitation?
Christopher Robin, thanks to the re-emergence of Pooh, discovers there is plenty of imagination in reality, too, and vice versa. When the gang from the Hundred Acre Wood arrives to deliver him from the trappings of himself, the lines are blurred for the characters in the film as well as the audience. Why let others dictate our happiness and reality, rather than shape it ourselves, bouncing as we go? After all, playing is a thing that should be done always, and everyone could use a little bit of saving.
Winnie the Pooh gets it, and Christopher Robin, too. Hopefully, someday, we all will.
Whit Honea and his family were invited media guests of Disney Vacation Club aboard the member cruise. All opinions are, obviously, his own.
