Movie Review: ‘Peter Rabbit’

by Ian Sarmiento

“Peter Rabbit,” based on the classic tale by Beatrix Potter and directed by Will Gluck, hopped into theaters last week. The film invites audiences into a new adventure with the Rabbit family as they defend their home from a new threat.

Peter Rabbit (James Corden) is a whimsical, smart, and mischievous . He and his family live in a burrow with one goal: find food. Easy, right? Especially since they live next to a food garden. If only it wasn’t owned by the McGregor family, who happen to hate rodents.

Peter teams up with his siblings Flopsy (Margot Robbie), Mopsy (Elizabeth Debicki), and Cotton-Tail (Daisy Ridley), as well as their cousin Benjamin (Colin Moody) to pull off their hunger-inspired food heists. Of course, when everything goes wrong, they always have Bea (Rose Byrne) to look out for them.

Right from the beginning, the movie held nothing back with introducing the characters in a brilliant and funny way. Allowing the music to capture the audience into the gorgeous European scenery. At the same time, the movie is quick to introduce major characters in the film and how their stories were meant to meet. It was simple and blunt, but it avoided giving any information that the writers would have had to tie back into the story.

There were many moments where the filmed seemed to throw in a joke to draw the audience away from anything too serious. Especially by playing with the different personalities wildlife would possess if they could actually talk to humans. It provides a funny and unique perspective on animals, but when you put a button-down shirt on a bunny and an apron on a hedgehog, what else can you really expect? The slapstick comedy involved lots of pain, but no actual injuries for the characters. The film’s cartoon humor can be best described as rare, and amusing, even a little on the sadistic side.

This movie isn’t for someone who enjoys thought-provoking and clever stories. Despite this, the producers succeeded in their ability to entertain the audience, and more importantly, to share an inspirational message: being honest and true to yourself. Peter, more than anything, wants to honor his parents and do his best for his family. But time and time again, his actions reveal that his true intentions were guided by selfish motives. By the end of the movie, Peter discovers that despite his flaws, when he’s true to himself, things will work out.

The cinematography was spot-on.  The shots in this movie are somewhat purposeful and well thought out. The interactions with the CGI animals looked great, especially considering that most of the interactions were with animals smaller than people. The dialogue was also well written. It was quite simple and the audience could easily hear every word.

Overall, the straight-forward plotline makes “Peter Rabbit” an easy movie to watch. It had good shots and was well-written to its target audience, and it teaches more than a couple very important messages. “Peter Rabbit” is a must-see for many families, especially those with young ones.

Ian Sarmiento is a freshman broadcasting and digital media major and an arts and entertainment writer for Cedars. He enjoys playing the piano, watching anime, and buying swords and knives so he can pretend to be a ninja.