If you want to adapt a well-known fairy tale into a movie, you must fit the image of the original, because the original has left a deep impression on people. The film magazine "Empire" bluntly said: Compared with "Paddington Bear", director Will Guler's handling of "Peter Rabbit" is obviously not a success, because Peter Rabbit and The original is very different; James Corden's overly mature and sophisticated voice acting would be more appropriate than a Dutch brother.
But I think there is at least one bright spot in "Peter Rabbit", which is the integration of the character of the original author, Beatrice Potter. Although there are still many flaws in Bi Ya's character design, it can be seen that the director did not completely focus on Peter Rabbit, and tried to use Bi Ya to convey the interpretation of Beatrice.
Beatrice has loved nature since she was a child, especially studying fungi. She has submitted papers on fungal reproduction to the UK's top research body for taxonomy. But there were few female scientists in the society at that time, and her parents from aristocratic background also asked her to manage housework and socialize like a contemporary lady in order to integrate into the upper class.
Beatrice did not enter the school for education, but followed the customs of the noble family and studied with the tutor. All day long playmates, only her rabbits and frogs. When she had to give up the science she loved, she turned her attention to the animals around her, creating the popular image of Peter Rabbit.
Similar to Beatrice's experience, Peter also encountered a dislocation of identity in "Peter Rabbit 2: The Escape Plan". He considered himself to be a hero who fearlessly led his family members through the vegetable garden, but he didn't expect that in the eyes of others, he was only a destructive guy. Even Peter's efforts to protect Thomas's tomatoes were mistaken for being evil. Thomas had to remind Peter over and over again to keep him out of trouble.
Tired of being labelled a "troublemaker" all the time, Peter takes refuge in an old rabbit named Barnabas, who lives on the streets of Gloucester and claims to be an old friend of Peter's father. Gradually, Barnabas's plans grew wilder and eventually turned into a catastrophe at the farmers' market. Just like in the "Peter Rabbit" movie, Peter also repented after seeing the personal safety of his family was threatened, and finally rescued the lost animals with the help of Thomas and Bea.
Rather than saying that "Peter Rabbit 2: The Escape Plan" is showing Peter's growth, it is better to say that it is Beatrice's "escape plan". Beatrice, who originally wanted to be a scientist, picked up a paintbrush because she was not recognized by the world and began to create the story of Peter Rabbit. Unwilling to let the commercial model destroy the simple and sincere image of Peter Rabbit in the original work, Beatrice turned down Disney's purchase request. However, worried that other manufacturers could not faithfully restore Beatrice of Peter Rabbit, they began to design peripheral products by themselves.
Beatrice's behavior is quite similar to what Beatrix did in "Peter Rabbit 2: The Escape Plan". The publisher suggested that the background of the story should be designed to be grander, stepping out of that small garden and implanting elements that the audience likes to watch, such as speedboats, racing cars, and airplanes. But Biya rejected it after some struggle, because those scenes were not their real life. But later, when saving small animals scattered all over the place, she and Thomas staged dramas such as drag racing and skydiving, turning the fantasy into reality.
It was Peter himself who caused his downfall and became a true "troublemaker". His attempts to escape Thomas' distrust through Barnabas were futile. In the same way, Bi Ya couldn't resist the temptation to sell her works, and under the inducement of the publisher, she accepted the character of a bad boy. Beatrice escapes worldly constraints by creating fairy tales, but ultimately participates in the commercialization of her work. In fact, it is not the environment that constrains them, but themselves. As Barnabas said when confronted with Peter's reproach:
It is not hard to lie to someone who wants to believe.
Perhaps after realizing this, Beatrice no longer created children's stories, but expressed her love for landscapes.
She is passionate about buying farms and breeding black-faced sheep. Like Wordsworth, another celebrity in the Lake District, only the purest natural scenery can heal their souls.
Wordsworth wrote in "The Narcissus":
I roamed alone, like a cloud drifting over the valley, and when I raised my eyes, I saw a cluster of golden daffodils, colorful and dense; on the shore of the lake, under the shade of the trees, they were swaying with the wind and dancing gracefully.
It is densely covered, like the stars twinkling up and down the Milky Way, this piece of narcissus, lined up in endless ranks along the lake bay; at a glance, I can see more than thousands of plants, trembling flower crowns, dancing lightly.
The ripples on the lake also dance in the wind, but the joy of the narcissus is more than the ripples; with such a pleasant companion, how can the poet not be relaxed and happy! I stared at it for a long time, but I never imagined what kind of treasure this beauty has given me.
From then on, whenever I lie down on the couch, or feel depressed, or in a dazed state of mind, the narcissus will flash in my mind-that is the paradise when I am lonely; my soul will be filled with joy and dance with the narcissus. .
View more about Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway reviews
