It’s a brave film studio that takes a childhood favourite and re-works it. But, in the case of Christopher Robin, the studio is Disney and the film is the latest of its live action versions of its extensive animated catalogue. Maleficent, Cinderella and Jon Favreau’s The Jungle Book have all gone before.
The story has moved on from Hundred Acre Wood, with a now grown up Christopher Robin (Ewan McGregor) living with his wife and daughter in London and working for a luggage company. But work is taking over his life and threatening his happiness, so much so that it needs Pooh and his friends to return and bring some sunshine back into his life in their own inimitable fashion.
Directed by Marc Forster (World War Z, Quantum Of Solace) and starring Hayley Atwell and Mark Gatiss alongside McGregor in the lead, the film has a wealth of voice talent bringing the CGI animals to life, including veteran Jim Cummings, who has been the voice of both Pooh and Tigger in Disney’s animations for over 30 years. Familiar names Peter Capaldi, Toby Jones, Nick Mohammed and Sophie Okenado are behind the likes of Rabbit, Owl, Piglet and Kanga.
Flickering Myth’s Freda Cooper spoke to Forster, voice acting legend Jim Cummings and Hayley Atwell about the film, working with those CGI animals, and the challenges of making another version of a childhood classic.
Christopher Robin is released in UK cinemas on Friday, 17 August.
Freda Cooper. Follow me on Twitter.
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