Alan Milne (a battened down Domhnall Gleeson) was a happy, witty West End playwright, until the bombardments and horror of World War I ruined his peace and drove him into the country, there to work on a book about peace. His son Christopher (Will Tilston) was a happy, clever dramatist in his own right, until the bombardments and horror of childhood fame ruined his peace and drove him into the army, there to seek the anonymity of war. The thing that almost saved Dad and ultimately damaged his boy? The carefully imagined (and even more carefully recorded) adventures of a stuffed menagerie: Tigger the Tiger, Eeyore the Donkey, Piglet the piglet, and a bear named Winnie-the-Pooh. Director Simon Curtis is equally careful in his efforts to make this a story of father and son, as opposed to their famous creation: damaged Dad and his devoted boy, finding their way through the hundred-acre wood. He does right by them, but does wrong in the process to the wife and mother (Margot Robbie), who veers from loving Muse to selfish monster, the latter role highlighted by the angelic Nanny (Kelly Macdonald). So yes, even kid-friendly art begins in a wound, and money tarnishes everything it touches. But maybe there’s a silver lining to that little black rain cloud hovering over the honey tree? (2017) — Matthew Lickona
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