Winnie the Pooh-Winnie the Pooh (2011)

Directed by: Stephen J. Anderson, Don Hall | 60 minutes | animation, family | Dutch voice cast: Kees Coolen, Job Schuring, Kees van Lier, Philip ten Bosch, Paul Klooté, Jérôme Reehuis, Hein Boele, Beatrijs Sluijter, Frenk Hakkaart, Jesse Pardon | Original voice cast: Jim Cummings, Craig Ferguson, Tom Kenny, Wayne Knight, Peter Cullen, Gilbert Gottfried

AA Milne’s stories of the Hundred Acre Wood, where the world’s sweetest (and hungriest) teddy bear Winnie the Pooh lives with his friends Piglet, Tigger, Eeyore, Kanga, Roe, Owl and Rabbit, have been loved by young and old for years. Not so strange, because the writer who died in 1956 wrote the books, as stated in his biography, for the child in all of us. Disney has regularly filmed one of its many stories since the 1960s. Because of the popularity of those movies, TV productions and merchandise, Pooh’s Disney image may be more famous than those iconic drawings by EH Shepard. Nevertheless, the cartoonists working at Disney manage to reproduce the original atmosphere of the books on the silver screen very well. In the 2D movie ‘Winnie the Pooh’ (‘Winnie the Pooh’, 2011) they manage to strike the right chord again.

The beginning of the film is already wonderful: we see Pooh sleeping well in his bed, when the voice-over (in the original version John Cleese, in the Netherlands we have to do it with Kees Coolen) tries to wake him up. That is not possible without further ado; the book has to be shaken, which results in a very funny scene. It is not the only time that the fourth wall is broken: the pages of the book regularly appear on the screen and the Hundred Acre Wood residents even use the letters to walk over, or even as a means of rescue… Very inventively and charmingly done.

Burney Mattinson, one of the few Disney artists who can still say that he has worked with Walt Disney, took it upon himself to write the screenplay. For this he seamlessly processed three separate stories by Milne into one larger story, leaving a lot of room for small jokes. He also did not lose sight of the original character of the characters. Pooh is as cheerful as ever, Tigger his own energetic self, and the anxious Piglet still has a heart that seems bigger than the entire Hundred Acre Wood put together. Eeyore is funnier than ever, but that’s mainly because he has a slightly bigger role than usual. Owl won’t admit that he’s actually not sure and that’s the catalyst for most of the movie.

It’s a day like any other. Pooh has another rumbling stomach (the grunt sounds surpassing all previous hunger pangs) and decides to look for honey. But when he discovers that Eeyore has lost his tail, he enlists Owl’s help. In the end, the animals decide to hold a competition: whoever finds a tail for Eeyore first, wins a jar of honey. Pooh likes that, but the price is still under his nose. When he wants to visit Janneman Robinson afterwards (perhaps he has honey?), all he finds is a note that says: “I’m gone. Busy. See you soon”. Owl is the only one who can read and concludes that Janneman Robinson has been kidnapped by a monster called Totzo. The heroic friends set out to capture the (imaginary) monster and save Janneman Robinson. It’s not easy on an empty stomach, Pooh notes. That makes for a typical, visually stunning, Disney dream scene, where Pooh sees honey jars everywhere and ends up swimming around in a bee suit in an oasis of honey. The scene where Owl draws his interpretation of the Totzo on the sign that acts as Eeyore’s tail, and the chalk drawings come to life, is equally phenomenal.

What is also striking is that – in live action – Janneman Robinson’s bedroom can be seen at the beginning and end of the film; and this was filmed with just as much love and attention as the rest of the adventures. It is also easy to imagine that John Lasseter (executive producer on this film) got his inspiration for ‘Toy Story’ from the adventures of Winnie the Pooh. Janneman Robinson plays with his toys in the same way that Andy does in ‘Toy Story’ (1995) and its sequels, and that is emphasized again in this film. Magnificent!

The only thing to criticize about ‘Winnie the Pooh’ is the short playing time, although that can be beneficial for young children. Older viewers will only regret that the film has already ended. Don’t miss the credits; this one was also made with care in line with the film. ‘Winnie the Pooh’ is a delightful, charming and nostalgic quality film, which you will enjoy to the fullest. Just like that goofy old bear can’t get enough of honey, this also tastes like more!