Yesterday, Susie and I saw Goodbye Christopher Robin, an historically accurate account [apparently] of A. A. Milne's creation of the classic children's book, Winnie The Pooh. It is one of the saddest movies I have ever seen, and left me horribly depressed.
You have been warned.
I'd only seen a trailer, which looked good, but I had know for a while that the real Christoper Robin had been deeply unhappy that his father had made him forever known as the friend of the "bear with little brains." It's perhaps hard for me to imagine what it was like to be in his shoes, so hard to see this as reasonable, but it does seem likely that there were deeper problems at some point, either in the relationship (then projected on to this) or Christopher Robin himself. Does the movie explore or explain this at all?
ReplyDeleteThe movie portrays the boy's relationship with his mother as appalling and paints his father as a weak and deeply troubled man who starts out trying to create a delightful imaginary world with his son and ends up exploiting it shamelessly. All in all, not a fun day at the flicks.
ReplyDeleteI have not seen the movie but reading A.A. Milne's poetry there are some darker overtones. I am sure some people know this one but I really love this anti-capitalist poem (set to music by Chris T-T here ):
ReplyDeleteMarket Square
by A. A. Milne
I had a penny,
A bright new penny,
I took my penny
To the market square.
I wanted a rabbit,
A little brown rabbit,
And I looked for a rabbit
'Most everywhere.
For I went to the stall where they sold sweet lavender
("Only a penny for a bunch of lavender!").
"Have you got a rabbit, 'cos I don't want lavender?"
But they hadn't got a rabbit, not anywhere there.
I had a penny,
And I had another penny,
I took my pennies
To the market square.
I did want a rabbit,
A little baby rabbit,
And I looked for rabbits
'Most everywhere.
And I went to the stall where they sold fresh mackerel
("Now then! Tuppence for a fresh-caught mackerel!").
"Have you got a rabbit, 'cos I don't like mackerel?"
But they hadn't got a rabbit, not anywhere there.
I found a sixpence,
A little white sixpence.
I took it in my hand
To the market square.
I was buying my rabbit
(I do like rabbits),
And I looked for my rabbit
'Most everywhere.
So I went to the stall where they sold fine saucepans
("Walk up, walk up, sixpence for a saucepan!").
"Could I have a rabbit, 'cos we've got two saucepans?"
But they hadn't got a rabbit, not anywhere there.
I had nuffin',
No, I hadn't got nuffin',
So I didn't go down
To the market square;
But I walked on the common,
The old-gold common...
And I saw little rabbits
'Most everywhere!
So I'm sorry for the people who sell fine saucepans,
I'm sorry for the people who sell fresh mackerel,
I'm sorry for the people who sell sweet lavender,
'Cos they haven't got a rabbit, not anywhere there!