Peter Rabbit

PETER RABBIT

Director : Will Gluck

Year : 2018

Genre : Comedy

Rating : **

While it may not be quite as terrible as the trailers promised, Sony Animation's cynical take on Beatrix Potter's most beloved creation is still a highly irritating viewing experience; filled to the brim with unfunny jokes, shameless product placements and a queasy modern sensibility that  defaces one of literatures most innocent icons. Emulating the same unrelenting exasperation he bought to Sony Animation's hideous 'The Emoji Movie', James Corden is knuckle-chewingly annoying in the central role of Peter, the titular bunny who leads a furry revolt against the mean Thomas (Domnhall Gleeson), the uptight nephew of the recently deceased Mr. McGregor (Sam Neill) who, like his uncle, wants to take the rabbits away and turn them into pies. To his credit, Gleeson actually comes off quite well here, performing the frequent bursts of slapstick with a great deal of vigour and charming self-effacement. Nice too is the relationship that forms between him and his neighbour, the kindly Bea (Rose Byrne) whose affection for the poorly rendered wildlife inevitably leads to domestic friction. However, the two have to share the screen with the body-popping Peter who is, as previously mentioned, irritating to the point of unlikeability. His treatment of Thomas goes way beyond the pail of mischievous fun and quickly descends into the realm of sadistic bullying - a heavily publicised and criticised scene of Peter taking advantage of his nemesis' allergies to blackberries is a wildly misjudged example of this. There is clearly something very wrong when a Peter Rabbit movie makes it's audience root for the humans rather than animals! Little kids will enjoy the frenetic direction and the many sight gags; although as is the norm for a mediocre comedy, the good jokes are repeated ad nauseam. Parents on the other hand will wish they were watching 'Black Panther' playing in the screen next door to them instead.